A Seer Becometh A Great Benefit To His Fellow Beings

Book of Mormon Lesson 17

Mosiah 7:29
Their doings shall be as a stumbling block before them
In English a stumbling block is defined as a circumstance that causes difficulty or hesitation; an impediment to belief or
understanding. We are so easily swayed by this world and its thinking. We can't help but compromise our faith at times, to
place stumbling blocks in our own path. Sometimes our actions surprise us; Other times the actions of others surprise us.
Sometimes we give in, sometimes we remain strong. Some of us, live under a cloud of remorse over past compromises or fear
about future behaviors. Do not let these self conscious emotions paralyze us, but allow them to serve as a catalyst to return
us to the Lord. Remember, that as as soon as we turn around and our eyes meet his, our Savior will run to us with open
arms.
What temptations do you deal with on a regular basis that might cause you to place a stumbling block in your way?

List some ways that you can prevent yourself from compromising your faith and morals.

Mosiah 7:33
But if ye will turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put your trust in him, and serve him with all diligence of mind,
if ye do this, he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver you out of bondage.
Take all your anxieties to Calvary. Stand in the shadow of God's crucified Son. Now pose your questions. Is Jesus on my side?
Look at the wound in His. Will He stay with me? Having given the supreme and costliest gift, "how will He not also with Him
grant us everything?" (Romans 8:32).

Consider the words of the hymn Amazing Grace.

'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.
When John Newton penned this promise, he did so out of personal experience. His greatest test came the day
he buried his wife, Mary. He had loved her dearly and prayed his death would precede hers. But his prayer was
answered in the negative.
Yet God's grace proved sufficient. On the day his wife died, Newton found strength to preach a Sunday sermon.
The next day he visited church members, and later he officiated at his wife's funeral. He grieved but in his
grief found God's provision. He later wrote, "The Bank of England is too poor to compensate for such a loss as
mine. But the Lord, the all-sufficient God, speaks, and it is done. Let those who know Him, and trust Him, be
of good courage. He can give them strength according to their day. He can increase their strength as their
trials increase.. and what He can do He has promised that He will do."
Let God's grace dethrone your fears. Anxiety still comes, for certain. The globe still heats up; wars still flare up;
the economy acts up. Disease, calamity, and trouble populate your world. But they don't control it! Grace does.
God has embedded your plane with a fleet of angels to meet your needs in His way at the right time.
Mosiah 8:3
And he also rehearsed unto them the last words which king Benjamin had ________________ them, and
__________________ them to the people of king Limhi, so that they might _____________________ all the
words which he spake.
I wonder how often I teach my children without taking the time to explain and to make sure that they
understand.

What do you think the difference is between teaching and explaining? Between knowing and understanding?

Read D&C 68:25.

What are we commanded to do in the verse?

Which of the doctrines listed have you taught your children but not explained? Which might they know but not
understand?

Mosiah 8:17
This verse lists 7 gifts of the spirit that have been bestowed upon our prophet. What are they?

Mosiah 8:18
This verse tells us why the Lord has given these gifts unto the prophet
that he might be a great benefit to his fellow beings.
What gifts have you received from God? How can you use them to be of great benefit to your fellow beings?

Remember, no else has your talents. No one. God elevates you from the common by matching your unique
abilities to custom made assignments. Read the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25. Notice that the
first two servants took risks, both dared to fail, both honored their masters trust. And their master
commended them. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been
faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
When you stand before your Savior, dont you long to hear those same words? If you are great with kids,
volunteer at the local school. If you have a head for business, start a soup kitchen. If you have the gift of
healing, dedicate one day a month to the less fortunate. The only mistake you can make with your God
given talents is to risk not making one. Such was the error of the third servant in the parable. The first
two invested. The last one buried. The first two went out on a limb. The third hugged the tree trunk. He
made the most common mistake of giftedness. He failed to benefit the master with his talent. If you
never use your gifts for God you are an unprofitable servant. And you will live a life of interred talents. You'll
stick your million-dollar skill in a box, hide it behind the bookshelf, and earn nothing for God. You may use
your uniqueness to build a reputation, a retirement, an investment account, but you wont build Gods
kingdom. Your heart will grow cold. For fear of doing the wrong thing for God, you'll do nothing for God. For
fear of making the wrong kingdom decision, youll make no kingdom decision. For fear of messing up, you
will be missing out.
God has lavished you with gifts and strengths in this life. Go out on a limb. He wont let you fall. Take a
big risk, he wont let you fial. He invite you to dream of the day when you feel his hand on your shoulder
and his eyes on your face, Well done, he will say, good and faithful servant.
Mosiah 9:3
And yet, I being over-zealous to inherit the land of our fathers
I love that Zeniff so readily accepts responsibility for his trials and tribulations. Am I that humble? Are
you? Some of our trials just happen, because we re human and living upon an imperfect earth. Some are
bought on by the choices of others. And still others probably the vast majority, are brought on by our own
selfish or short sided choices.
When is the last time that you brought a trial upon yourself? Did you accept responsibility for your choice as
easily as did Zeniff?

Mosiah 9:17-19
In the strength of the Lord did we go forth
How can we go forth with the strength of the Lord? By following the example and pattern set by Zeniff and his followers
Step One: Cry mightily unto the Lord
We should be aware of two facts at all times. 1) We are unable to handle this life on our own 2) Our Father in Heaven can.
With these in mind we need to leave self-righteousness behind and stand on the solid path of Gods strength. When we do so
we are able to do miraculous things. Death is disarmed. Failures are forgivable. Our foes are defeated. With precious, wobbly
steps, we draw closer to him. For a season of surprising strength we stand upon his promises. It doesnt make sense that we
are able to to do this. We are not worthy of such divine intervention. And yet, there it it. Depend on the one who makes all
things possible.
Sister Mary Durham said in the April 2016 conference,

Answers come when we recognize the divine source of

strength. It is a source often underestimated, yet it
can be used daily to lighten our loadThat source
is the guiding gift of the Holy Ghost.

When you face hard times, what is your default position? I can do this all by myself or Father, I need help?

When we face hard time we must take our problems to our Heavenly Father, not to the mall, not out on
others, not in temper tantrums. Where do you tend to take your problems rather than bringing them to
Heavenly Father?

Why is it hard to really leave our problems with the Savior and not keep carrying them in our heart and in our
minds? Why do we find it so hard to resist the urge to reclaim the problem once weve given it up in prayer?

Step Two: Remember.

I call this The Principle of the Bear and the Lion. Read 1 Samuel 17:33-37
When we talk about David and Goliath, we often start with David fighting Goliath, but that is not where the
story begins. David began as a shepherd protecting his flocks. He saved them from a bear and then he
saved them from a lion. The text doesnt mention shepherding and Davids slaying these wild beast as a
chance to hone his marksmanship. Instead, overcoming these wild beast led David to know more about God
to Davids unshakeable testimony that God would deliver him in all situations. When we remember what God
has done for us in the past, we are better able to face what God has in store for us in the future.
When have you most recently seen the hand of the Lord in your life?

Step Three: Go to Work.

After praying, and after remembering, Zeniff and his army went to work. The Lord has provided us with the
raw materials, we must supply the labor. Brigham Young said, Everything connected with building up Zion
requires actual, severe labor. It is nonsense to talk about building up any kingdom except by labor; it requires
the labor of every part of our being, whether it be mental, physical or spiritual, and that is the only way to
build up the Kingdom of God. (DBY, 291)
What can I do this week to help the Lord to help me?