Day 139 The Rising Generation: Understand and Believe

In Matthew 5:13, Jesus tells his followers that they are the salt of the earth, and in the same sentence offers a warning that savorless salt is good for nothing. Join me in an attempt to be savory salt as I share each day one verse of scripture and one small thought. Perhaps this small daily emphasis can lead to greater savor in your life and ultimately you and I can be savory salt.

Hello, my friends and family. Wherever you're listening from, thank you for joining me and know that I'm cheering for your every success. Welcome to day 139 on our 365-day journey through the Book of Mormon.

And I got a question for you. Chicken or the egg? That's got me thinking today in today's verse and today's reading.

The chicken or the egg? Perhaps the answer is yes. And yes, but I don't know.

Let's take a look at it and see what we have to dive into today. On your journey today, you're going to be reading Mosiah 25:19-24. You'll finish that chapter.

The rest of the baptism and unity and Church of Christ and Church of God naming there. And Mosiah 26:1-14. And that's going to take us to where our verse for the day lies, is Mosiah 26.

We're going to have a shift after the great unity that came in chapter 25 and that shift starts out right in verse number one. So let's take a look at Mosiah 26:1 and see what we can learn from it. Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand the words of King Benjamin, being little children at the time he spake unto his people, and they did not believe the tradition of their fathers.

Now this starts out as a small group of people and as we learn in this chapter, this group of people is going to grow and in fact they're going to become very challenging to the members of the Church at the time. And there's two words in here that I think are really interesting. Perhaps my words for chicken or egg here.

First one: many of the rising generation that could not understand. That's the first one we have is understand the words of King Benjamin. And then we fast forward to the end of the verse and they did not believe.

So then comes the core question here a little bit that I've been stewing on. Is it that they did not understand, therefore they didn't believe? Or is it they didn't believe, therefore they could not understand the words?

And I think we learn a little bit in verse 3 that answers a little bit of that, because it talks about, because of their unbelief, they could not understand. But I think when it comes to the rising generation, for us and for what I'm looking at inside of this scripture, the question I have for you in this verse for me personally is, how do I make sure that I'm doing the best to help my children do both? How can I do my best to help them understand the words of the prophets?

King Benjamin at that time was their example. I could use the Book of Mormon or I could use scriptures or I could use the words of the prophets as an example. But what role can I play in helping my children understand the words of the prophets?

Break them down for them, help them see what they're talking about. And then on the flip side, what role can I play as a parent to this rising generation to help them believe the very things that they are reading? Because really as I look at it, whether it is I don't understand, therefore I don't believe, or I don't believe, therefore I don't understand.

For me and the way that I'm looking at it for the rising generation, if I can help my children and those of the rising generation around me either understand and or believe in the words. And yet it all stems off of this beginning concept right out of verse one here that focuses on the rising generation not believing and not understanding. If you feel like you're in that rising generation today, perhaps this gives you a little bit of a lens to look at.

What can you do to better understand? That might help drive your beliefs. And in what areas can you help extend your own beliefs?

Even as we're going to learn later in the Book of Mormon, even a desire to believe can help bring a better understanding of gospel principles. So today for you, I hope that whether it's belief-based or understanding-based, I hope perhaps you take an approach to embrace both of them in your life and both seek to understand the words of the prophets and then believe them. And or believe the words of the prophets and then seek to understand them.

That's all for today my friends. Remember that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass. Keep it small, keep it simple, and always seek to be savory salt.

I'll be here tomorrow. I hope you are too. We'll see you next time.