What I think about the Book of Mormon...

I just finished reading the Book of Mormon again. I don't know how many times I have read it... maybe 20 or so times.. but every time I read it, I learn something new! And every time I finish it, I have a mixed feeling of sadness (as you would when any good book ends) and great excitement to restart and read it once again. I love the stories. Just as I can't imagine not knowing about Jonah and the whale, Noah's ark, Daniel in the lion's den, and David that slew Goliath- I can't imagine not knowing about Ammon cutting off the arms of the Lamanites and converting an entire community, the 2000 Stripling Warrior's lives being spared because of their great faith, and Lehi and Nephi walking out of a crumbling prison completely unscathed. The Book of Mormon is filled with miraculous, faith-promoting, heart touching stories. I wonder how Lehi could have so much faith to leave his home in Jerusalem and everything he owns and take his family to journey across the ocean to the Americas. I feel like I'm at General Conference when I read about the beloved King Benjamin addressing his people right before his death. I reevaluate my personal commitment to stand up for my beliefs and share the gospel as I read about Abinidi being burned at the stake for his unwavering testimony. I feel hope that I will be able to change my life for the better and become more Christlike as I read  about the sons of Mosiah who went from being the vilest of sinners to some of the most faithful, diligent, and patient  missionaries this world has ever known. I am comforted at times when people reject and criticize my beliefs when I read about Alma and Amulek withstanding accusing judges and cynical lawyers. And my heart is pointed towards Christ and His Second Coming as I read about the sign of Christ's birth birth being fulfilled right before all the believers were to be killed, and the great storm and darkness at His death...followed by the most beautiful account of His 3 day visit to the Americas after His resurrection. My heart breaks as I read about the tragic destruction of the Nephite and Lamanite civilizations 400 years after His coming- Mormon and his faithful son Moroni being left to write the sad ending and seal up the record so that Joseph Smith can be led to translate them 1400 years later. All of these stories- all of these faithful prophets and missionaries- I can't imagine not having. They are just as precious to me as the story of Esther going before the king for the sake of her people, Job still holding on to his faith even after losing everything, and of course, the miraculous stories of Jesus Christ in the New Testament... His teachings, miracles, love and infinite sacrifice for ALL. I know that the Book of Mormon is the Word of God just as surely as I know the Bible is. How do I know this with such a sure conviction? In a General Conference talk given by Tad R. Callister a couple of years ago he said:

"Years ago my great-great-grandfather picked up a copy of the Book of Mormon for the first time. He opened it to the center and read a few pages. He then declared, “That book was either written by God or the devil, and I am going to find out who wrote it.” He read it through twice in the next 10 days and then declared, “The devil could not have written it—it must be from God.That is the genius of the Book of Mormon—there is no middle ground. It is either the word of God as professed, or it is a total fraud. This book does not merely claim to be a moral treatise or theological commentary or collection of insightful writings. It claims to be the word of God—every sentence, every verse, every page. Joseph Smith declared that an angel of God directed him to gold plates, which contained the writings of prophets in ancient America, and that he translated those plates by divine powers. If that story is true, then the Book of Mormon is holy scripture, just as it professes to be; if not, it is a sophisticated but, nonetheless, diabolical hoax."

I know how much closer I feel to my Savior when I read it and I know how much happier, grateful, humble, and charitable it makes me. Therefore- I know that is is a book inspired by God. For the devil could not and would not have inspired such a book. It is one of my greatest blessings in my life- it has changed my life- and it can change anyone's life for the better if they ask with a sincere and honest heart. At the end of the Book of Mormon, Moroni pleads with everyone saying:

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye 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.

 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things. (Moroni 10:4-5)


As a missionary, a representative of the Lord, Jesus Christ, and as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I give this same pleading because I have read it, I have pondered it, I have prayed about it, and I know that the things written in it are true. So... 

Why does this even matter??

President Hinckley encouraged us to read the Book of Mormon to lift us above the things of the world, to enjoy the things of the Lord. He said, “Without reservation I promise you that if each of you will observe this simple program, regardless of how many times you previously may have read the Book of Mormon, there will come into your lives and into your homes an added measure of the Spirit of the Lord, a strengthened resolution to walk in obedience to His commandments, and a stronger testimony of the living reality of the Son of God” (Ensign, Aug. 2005.).

And these blessings are far more valuable than any material possession... It is the closest thing to a cure-all that we have in this world.