Day 153 Alma's Choice: Prioritizing Pure Testimony

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. I've got a quick question for you to start off this episode.

Do you feel like your priorities sometimes battle with your priorities? I feel like I'm there a little bit sometimes, and I hope that what we have to read today will help with that a little bit. Welcome to Day 153 on our 365-day journey through the Book of Mormon together.

Today, you're going to be reading Alma chapter 4, verses 13 through 20. You're going to finish that chapter and you're going to begin Alma chapter 5, verses 1 through 4. Today, we're going to take a look in Alma chapter 4 as Alma is watching kind of this division occur inside of the church.

This polarization starting to happen between some of the haves and have, some of the nicer dress and not nicer dress, and challenges between the rich and the poor a little bit. Alma, observing this, he trying to do his best as chief judge, he trying to do his best as high priest, and he gets to a point where his priorities seem to be battling his priorities. This is the decision that Alma makes, and I want to see what it means for you and I today.

We're going to read Alma chapter 4, verse 19 together: "And this he did that he himself might go forth among his people, or among the people of Nephi, that he might preach the word of God unto them, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty, and that he might pull down by the word of God all the pride and craftiness and all the contentions which were among his people, seeing no way that he might reclaim them, save it were in bearing down in pure testimony." I'm going to stay as high priest and I'm going into a full ministry, bearing pure testimony everywhere I go amongst the people of Nephi. It's got me thinking. I kind of had a time just recently, I guess it's been almost a year ago, not quite a year ago.

I had the opportunity to go and serve just for a little bit over a week in Papua New Guinea and was there for a church youth conference, a young adult conference. It was an amazing experience. The mission president at the time there, President Hosea, a good friend of mine, we were talking on a plane as we were flying out to the destination we trying to get to.

And I just told him, I said, "I wish I could just let everything else go and just focus on building the church." And he said something to me that was kind of interesting. He just said, "The time will come. The time will come." I still have that desire.

I want to just all day every day, I want to do things that build the church and that build others' testimonies of Christ and help lift people, enlighten people, and enlighten people. All those things. That's what I want to do all day every day.

President Hosea really gave me an interesting perspective there, as Alma makes the decision to just leave part of his life out. Now he leaves; he chooses to leave the secular, or the political part, of his life out. But what it's got me thinking about for me is: What can I do now?

What can be left out of my life? What could I let go of in terms of my current priorities to better increase my opportunity to preach the word, or to stir up remembrance of their duties, or to bear down in pure testimony? What could I eliminate and simplify in order to do that?

Now that might be personal. What could I leave out of my life to just get personal study more important in my life? We'll be right back.

All of these are things that allow me to better fulfill my church calling. Maybe you're getting the feel to do it at a community level. Maybe you're at a stage in life where it's time to put some mission papers in and say, "Hey, it's time to go and serve." Whatever it is, the question that I want to pose to you that I've been posing to myself is: What can I let go of?

Because Alma let go of the entire country when it came to political administration. He in turn focused entirely on the spiritual health of the people. I don't think that's saying Alma's telling us all to let go of all the secular aspects of our lives, but it does bring me down and say, "Allen, what secular or political or worldly aspect of your life can you let go of and increase the amount of opportunities you have to bear pure testimony of the Savior Jesus Christ?" That's something that I'm digging into personally and I encourage you to do so as well.

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, and I hope you are too.