Day 311 Enlisting to Help Gather Israel

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 311 on our 365 day journey through the Book of Mormon together. Today, you're going to be reading 3 Nephi chapter 21, verses 1 through 19.

The Lord Jesus Christ, the covenant the Father made with the house of Israel. Verse 7 says, The covenant which he hath made unto the people who are of the house of Israel. What in the world?

Now remember, that's part of the sentence, so you can go back and read it. But the covenant that the Father has made is that he will gather Israel. What's happening here is as the seed, right, the seed of the Nephites, as they begin to The Book of Mormon and what not, these are all from all the verses above.

As they start to get them, they will realize that the work of the Lord has commenced to fulfill the covenant of the gathering of Israel. Now my friends, President Nelson in 2018 did a youth devotional. I don't know if some of you remember it or not, but he did a youth devotional and he talked about this.

He called it "Hope of Israel." This is where he talked about the battalion of the Lord, right? This is where he enlisted the youth to step in and to help with the gathering of Israel. And I want to say, if you have time, I will put the link in here.

You absolutely should go and watch this devotional again. It is worth your time and attention. But I thought it was applicable to come and perhaps maybe it's time to take President Nelson's challenge again.

It's been years since he gave this talk. And yet, the timing of it and the challenges inside of it are oh so telling in what it can do to help us increase our lives spiritually. Inside of it, he gave five challenges to enlist in the Lord's youth battalion to help gather Israel.

The first one: Hold a seven-day fast from social media. The second one: Make a weekly sacrifice of time to the Lord for three weeks consecutive. Third: Keep on the covenant path.

If you are off, repent and get back on the path. Four: Pray daily that all of God's children might receive the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And five: Stand out, be different, be a light.

Give to a friend one copy of the booklet "For the Strength of Youth." My friends, what an amazing set of challenges! And whether you want to engage in them fully or not, they tell us a story of how to help gather Israel. Maybe we could take a little break from social media.

Whether it's a seven-day fast or not, you decide for you. What does a weekly sacrifice of time look to the Lord specifically? What does it mean for you to keep on the covenant path and repent and get back on it if you're off?

What does it look like to pray daily that all of God's children might receive the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ? And how can you and I stand out, be different, and be a light? I am grateful to a living prophet of God that has given us this counsel.

And I'm grateful that we can see the signs straight from the Book of Mormon here, straight from the words of Jesus Christ. We can see them coming to pass as the Lord gathers Israel today in our time here and now. 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.