Bethany's Pre-mission talk

January 20, 2013
My Experience with the Book of Mormon
Well this is terrifying. Forgive me if my ears turn a little PINK—I’m pretty nervous. I guess it’s okay though, ‘cause even if I do a terrible job, most of you will still love me. I hope.
Brother Henne asked me to speak on the Book of Mormon and my experience with the Book of Mormon.
The first time I read the Book of Mormon I was eleven years old. I shared a room with my big sister Caryn, and everything that she did to get ready for bed, I did too. So we’d wash our faces and brush our teeth, read our scriptures and say our prayers each night. I made a lot of good habits doing that with her.
So I finished reading the Book of Mormon right when I turned twelve and entered Young Womens. This was really cool because in Personal Progress, one of the Faith Value projects is to read the Book of Mormon. So I just checked that off the list.
After I finished reading the Book of Mormon, I followed Moroni’s challenge to ask God if it was true. He says that if you “shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.” So when I knelt down to pray, I expected something great to happen, some big bold witness that it was true. And nothing happened. And I felt a little silly.
And then I realized that I didn’t feel anything new or different because I already knew it was true. I was asking a question that I already had an answer to. Sometimes testimonies are quiet like that. You don’t even realize that you have a testimony until you ask, “Do I know this?”
So how did I know? And how do I still know that the Book of Mormon is true? It’s the way I feel. When I read the Book of Mormon…
It feels good. It feels right. It feels true. I find that when I read it, my mind is clear. I feel like a part of my brain opens up, and I understand more. Not just the spiritual things, but everything. This is because reading the BOM brings the Spirit, and the Spirit teaches all truth. I actually do better in school when I’m reading my scriptures regularly. One semester I made sure to read every morning before I left for school. This was one of my hardest semesters, and I knew that the only way I could survive it was if I put God first. And you know what? It worked. That was my hardest semester work-wise, but it ended up being my best semester grade-wise. And it’s because I relied heavily on my Father in Heaven.
When I read the Book of Mormon, I feel most like myself—if that makes sense. There are some moments when I think, “This is right. This is me. This is who I am supposed to be.” It happens when I am at the temple, or when I am loving somebody, or when I am solving a really great math problem, or when I read my Patriarchal blessing. And it happens when I read the Book of Mormon. That’s when I know I’m doing the right thing. I am doing what my Father in Heaven wants me to do, so that I can become the Bethany he wants me to be. This is when I have the Spirit with me the strongest, and I feel full of light. They say that having the Spirit brightens your countenance, and your face lights up. I guess it’s some kind of BIOLUMINESCENCE.
On the other hand, when I’m being mean or cynical or selfish, I feel out of sync with myself. My mind gets all closed off, and I don’t want to read my scriptures. But that’s when it’s most important for me to read.
In 1 Nephi 15 verse 24 Nephi says that “whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.” So reading the Book of Mormon gives you the power to withstand temptation. I know that is true. I’ve seen the difference between days when I read and days when I don’t, and trust me, it’s better to read.
And it’s not just good for your spiritual health, it’s fun to read. As part of my missionary preparation, I’m supposed to study the scriptures for 30 minutes every day. And that’s a lot. But I’ve found that when I get really into the stories, my little 30 minute timer goes off, and I don’t want to stop reading. It’s cool to read about Ammon smiting off Lamanite arms, and the armies of Moroni with their stratagem , where they trick the Lamanites into leaving their fortified cities to chase after the weak little Nephite army, just to find themselves trapped between two huge armies. Or when Captain Moroni is ticked off at the government for sitting back and doing nothing and he basically tells them—if you don’t help, I will march my army right up to you, and we will take you out. He says in Alma 60:28 “Yea, behold I do not fear your power nor your authority, but it is my God whom I fear” and later in verse 36, “I seek not for power, but to pull it down, I seek not for the honor of the world, but for the glory of my God, and the freedom and welfare of my country.” Of course, it wasn’t really Pahoran’s fault, but I just love reading that chapter. It gets me all fired up.
I try to think of all these cool scripture heroes as real people--real men who are good and strong, and not unlike some of the men in my life. Captain Moroni, of course, reminds me of my Dad. They both are two of the coolest strongest men, who love their wives and children, and would do anything to protect them. I’ve known an Alma the Younger or two also. Young men that repent and return to God with a zeal and a valiance that I can’t help but look up to. They’re my heroes, even if they don’t know it.
In the Book of Mormon you have father’s like Lehi, whose greatest desire is for his children to partake of the fruit of the Tree of Life, so that they can taste its sweetness. And then there is Alma the elder, who prays for his rebellious son with such faith that an angel comes down to visit Alma the Younger. That is some serious fatherly love. I love the Stripling Warriors, whose mothers taught them to have faith in God, and they did not doubt their mothers knew it. And their captain Helaman loves them as his own sons. When Amulek gives up all his possessions, and is “rejected by those who were once his friends and also by his father and his kindred,” Alma took Amulek back to his own house to administer to him and strengthen him in the Lord. And when Alma reunites with the sons of Mosiah after many years, they rejoice that they are still brethren in the Lord. I love these mission companions and friends and brothers who care so much about each other.
I love Ammon and the sons of Mosiah, who, after being converted themselves, they told their dad that they didn’t want to be king, they wanted to be missionaries and teach the Lamanites. Everybody thought they were crazy for wanting to teach the Lamanites. The Lamanites hated them!  But as it says in Mosiah 28:3, “they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not bear that any human soul should perish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure endless torment did cause them to quake and tremble.” And look at the success they had. They converted thousands of their brethren.
As a future missionary, of course I love reading about Ammon. Ammon was a great missionary, and not because he was great with a sling and a sword. He was a great missionary because he loved the people, and he wanted to serve them—he literally wanted to be a servant. King Lamoni is so impressed with Ammon’s faithfulness. He says, “surely there has not been any servant among all my servants that has been so faithful as this man (Alma 18:10).” I love when he’s teaching King Lamoni. He does just what they teach us in mission prep. He asks Lamoni questions, and gives very simple and straightforward answers. He uses the scriptures to teach, and he bears testimony. He’s definitely a great example to me right now.
Now where was I? Oh I know, I found this scripture by chance—I had a little SWIRLY drawn next to it. Anyways, in Alma 31, the Nephites were worried that the apostate Zoramites would join forces with the Lamanites and try to destroy them. And so Alma goes to preach to the Zoramites, because he knew that “the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else.” So at my house we go on and on about politics and how crazy the world is getting, and you wonder what we can do to change things, to make things better. Then I think, the best thing we can do is work on the hearts of the people. That’s the most effective way to change their behavior. So the best thing that I can do right now is go on a mission and teach the people of the Philippines.
 And then there is the Book of Ether, which is like the condensed version of the Nephite history, with the Jaredite people cycling through the pride cycle in just a few chapters. But the Jaredites were cool—not only did they have cows and sheep and horses, they had cureloms and cumoms and ELEPHANTS. Fact.
Anyways, one of my favorite scriptures in Ether—actually it was really my mom’s favorite first—is Ether 12:4. That’s the scripture I chose for my missionary plaque. It says, “Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.”
I'm the kind of person that worries a lot--about school, my family, my future career, etc. The world is a pretty crazy place, but because I have a knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I know that things will work out. I know that God is my Father in Heaven, and He loves me very much. He wants me to be happy. Whether I am excited or stressed, happy or heartbroken, I can talk to Him through prayer, and He hears me. He wants the very best for me, and so if I stay close to Him and keep His commandments, He will bless me. He knows that I am not perfect, and so He has provided a Savior and Redeemer, even His son Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Christ suffered and died for my sins, I can repent and be forgiven, and I can return to live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ again. I love this gospel. I love learning from the scriptures. I love that my family can be together forever, even after this life. I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is Christ's church restored on the earth, and it is the only place wherein we find true happiness.