The Faith of a Father

As Ammon and the king and queen and the servants are all lying on the floor, being overcome by the Spirit, a crowd of people summoned by Abish have gathered, wondering.  Everyone has a different theory as to why all these people have been smitten, but one of the robbers, whose brother was killed by Ammon for scattering the flocks, draws his sword and comes to kill Ammon.  And he is struck dead.

Alma 19:23 Now we see that Ammon could not be slain, for the ^aLord had said unto Mosiah, his father: I will spare him, and it shall be unto him according to thy faith—therefore, Mosiah ^btrusted him unto the Lord. 

 I find it interesting that the Lord says it is because of Mosiah's faith that Ammon is protected.  It probably also related to Ammon's faith, but maybe Ammon wasn't as concerned about his safety as his father was.  And Mosiah was probably praying mightily for the safety of his sons.

As we send our children out into the world we have to trust that the Lord will watch over them.  Especially as missionaries, our children are under the Lord's protection.  But we need to continue to pray and have faith in that protection and in the Lord's promises.

The Light of Christ

Alma 18:5 King Lamoni was suddenly filled with fear that the Great Spirit was angry with him for killing those servants who had allowed the flocks to be scattered.

. . . nevertheless, Lamoni began to fear exceedingly, with fear lest he had done wrong in slaying his servants; . . .

I think it is the Light of Christ that touched Lamoni's heart at this time. The teachings of the Lamanites had not taught him that there was anything wrong with what he was doing.

Notwithstanding they believed in a Great Spirit, they supposed that ^cwhatsoever they did was right;. . .

So even though the customs said that he was justified in killing his servants, his conscience was bothering him. He had authorized those killings, but had had guilty feelings for doing so. And now that he thought Ammon was the Great Spirit, he assumed that he was being judged for what he was feeling guilty about.

This is a good example of how the Light of Christ is given to every man. The world would have us believe that our customs and teaching and social mores are what create or make up our conscience. But we are given the Light of Christ which teaches us things we are not taught of man, and gives us guidance and direction to lead us to the Light.

And They Were Comforted

Ammon and his brethren had persuaded their father to allow them to go to the Lamanites to preach the gospel. As they traveled into the wilderness they fasted and prayed. They wanted to be able to help the Lamanites to repent and learn of the Lord.

Alma 27:10 And it came to pass that the Lord did ^avisit them with his ^bSpirit, and said unto them: Be ^ccomforted. And they were comforted.

Sometimes I request help from the Lord and He says, "Be comforted." But before I realize what's happening, I'm worrying again, gnawing on the same bone. I need to turn things over to the Lord and when He tells me to be comforted I should let go and trust Him. And be comforted.

In Alma 17, we read that as Alma and Amulek continued teaching and preaching, they ran across the sons of Mosiah, who were returning from their mission to the Lamanites. Verse 2 says, Alma did rejoice exceedingly to see his brethren; and what added more to his joy, they were still his brethren in the Lord.

Then Mormon gives us a formula, telling us what these men had done to retain their testimonies.
1) They had searched the scriptures diligently
2) They had given themselves to much prayer
3) They had given themselves to much fasting.

I had originally thought that was the end of the list. It's a great list, with the essential elements. But today I discovered in verse 4 another step that's also very important.
4) They had been teaching the word of God for 14 years.

It's very important to gain our own testimonies and to keep those testimonies bright through study, fasting and prayer. But it's also essential to share our testimonies with others, teaching our families or church classes or through missionary work. Teaching reinforces, reminds and strengthens those things that we learn.

Healing

Alma and Amulek find Zeezrom in Sidom, and he's very ill because of mental torment for his sins. Alma goes to him and makes this statement.
Alma 15:8 And Alma said: If thou believest in the redemption of Christ thou canst be ^ahealed.
Then Zeezrom declares his faith in Christ, and Alma heals him, and Zeezrom leaps to his feet.

The reason this scripture touched me is that I've struggled quite a bit to understand the faith that is required to be healed. Sometimes I've wondered if I had enough faith to be healed. Not that I lack faith that the Lord CAN heal me, but was worried that He might not think it was in my best interest to be healed. Obviously, some problems and afflictions exist in people's lives for eternal purposes, and not everyone who hopes to be healed will be healed, if it's not for their best good. So I've received priesthood blessings with some reservations rather than complete faith.

But this scripture really changes my thinking! I don't have to have perfect faith that I'm supposed to be healed. I just need to have faith in my Lord, Jesus Christ. And I do have that, in abundance! I can focus on my love for Him, knowing that He loves me, and that whatever happens is best for me.

Thank you, Alma, for teaching me that!