Posted by I’m writing this for me – to me, about me, for me. Oh, you can read it. That’s fine. But I didn’t write it with you in mind. I wrote it with me in mind. Why? To sort out my thoughts, to revisit an important occurrence in my life, to confirm to myself that what was important to me still is important to me, and to ask myself whether I’m being true to what I believe.
I had an experience when I was sixteen, when we were having family home evening, and I felt the very strong presence of the Spirit and a confirmation, not an audible voice, but a powerful assurance that went straight to my heart, that the Book of Mormon was true. It was undeniable. I had that experience. No doubt. And like Joseph Smith said, “I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it.”
But was that all I needed to sustain me throughout my whole life? Joseph Smith had “The First Vision” – it wasn’t the “First and Only and That’s all You Get Vision.” He had more. He saw the Savior many times and heavenly messengers many times and received an incredible amount of revelation.
No, I needed more, and I have received more and expect to yet receive more. Just as Joseph had that powerful experience, and had multiple experiences to teach him line upon line, precept upon precept as he went through trials, successes, confusion, doubts, happiness, and discouragements, I had a powerful experience preceded by and followed by God teaching me line upon line, precept upon precept as I have gone through trials, successes, confusion, doubts, happiness, and discouragements.
I used the word “doubts” above. I don’t believe Joseph ever doubted he had seen God and Jesus Christ, so I don’t believe that the further manifestations were to convince him he had actually seen what he had seen. In the same way, I have not doubted the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon and I have not doubted that I actually had that experience at age sixteen confirming these things. Joseph received further revelation and manifestations as he was ready for it, as he had shown faith, as he had questions, as he had trials. In the same way, I have had revelation, further confirmation, and spiritual promptings as I have been ready for it, as I have shown faith, as I have had questions, and as I have had trials. And much of these things have centered around my reading of the Book of Mormon.
So, if the Book of Mormon is truly God’s word to me, to teach me, guide me, assure me, and has that kind of impact on my life, then I should read it every day, right? Yes, I should, just as Church leaders encourage me to do. I should exercise and eat right regularly too, but did a plate of vegetables win out over a big plate of nachos and a donut last night? No. Did the gym win out over my being a couch potato and watching football highlights last night? No. Does my reading the Book of Mormon always win out over reading or watching other stuff? No.
When President Benson wrote his talk about the Church being under condemnation for not reading the Book of Mormon enough, for not taking it seriously enough, if you look at the paper he was writing it on, you’ll see that it originally said that “Brian Johnson is under condemnation,” and you’ll see that he crossed my name out (so as not to single me out) and wrote in “the whole Church,” but he had me in mind.
You see, I get bored or distracted. I know I should be diligently reading and studying the Book of Mormon every day, but I have so many choices of what to read. So many choices!! From entertaining to deep to insightful to trivial, so many choices!! I enjoy classic novels, I enjoy sports podcasts, I enjoy behavioral psychology books, I enjoy design books, I enjoy comedy sketches, I enjoy business books, I enjoy sports highlight reels, I enjoy articles about investing, I enjoy history books and documentaries, I enjoy books or vlogs or blogs on gardening and hiking and cooking and business startups, and on and on, so many interests and so much satisfaction in learning things. So many choices!! But, “Information consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention” (Herbert Simon). I don’t pay attention. Often, I don’t pay attention to the Book of Mormon because it gets buried under all the other information and things I’m interested in. Not that the things above are bad things. We should be learning about all sorts of things. It’s good to learn. But yet, the Book of Mormon gets buried.
And often, rather than reading the Book of Mormon, I choose to read the Bible or the Doctrine and Covenants or a general conference talk or a book or article by the prophet or one of the other general authorities or I’ll read articles by the Church or about the Church. These are all very important. I need to be reading these too. But again, the Book of Mormon gets buried.
Moroni buried the plates to preserve them for our day. I often bury the Book of Mormon with other reading choices. Not intentionally, but it just happens. If I leave the choice to the moment, I find that I usually choose something else. Why?
Maybe I’m looking for the shiniest, latest, most insightful, most entertaining, deepest, shallowest, most trivial and mind-numbing, funniest, most well-written.
Maybe it’s that I’ve already read the Book of Mormon many times and feel I already know what’s in there. I already know (spoiler alert!) that Nephi gets the plates from Laban, that the 2000 stripling warriors don’t get killed in battle, that Ammon whacks a bunch of guys’ arms, and that Moroni is the last one standing.
But I also know that these stories contain so much that benefit me each time I read them. And the Book of Mormon is more than stories – there are doctrines and principles and applications that will take me much more than a lifetime to read and reread and study and apply. The Book of Mormon is “Another Testament of Jesus Christ.” It’s by Him and through Him and about Him and because of Him. If I am to come to know Jesus Christ, it is through the Book of Mormon. I testify that I have been blessed many times in my life because of reading the Book of Mormon and I have come closer to my Savior because of the Book of Mormon.
So here’s the thing, well actually two things:
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“The Book of Mormon (is) the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book” (Joseph Smith). I know this to be true. The Spirit told me this when I was sixteen and many times since.
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“In 1829, the Lord warned the Saints that they are not to trifle with sacred things (see D&C 6:12). Surely the Book of Mormon is a sacred thing, and yet many trifle with it, or in other words, take it lightly, treat it as though it is of little importance” (President Ezra Taft Benson). I can choose to not trifle with the Book of Mormon. There are many many good things to read and study, but when I have chosen to not treat the Book of Mormon lightly, but to study it and apply what I learn, and to follow promptings of the Spirit, I have been blessed, guided, comforted. I know this to be true. The Spirit has confirmed this many times to me.
I know that the Book of Mormon is true. Now, it’s up to me to consistently be true to the Book of Mormon.
Book of Mormon Testimonies 