2.216 Go Forth Among the People, to Declare the Word

In Matthew 5:13, Jesus calls us the salt of the earth, a bold reminder that our lives are meant to carry his flavor, his truth, and his love to the world. Join me each day to explore one verse of scripture and one thought, striving to stay full of savor and truly live as savory salt. Hello my friends, it's great to have you with me.

Today let's be anxiously engaged in a good cause and bring to pass much righteousness. We are going to be diving in this week into Doctrine and Covenants Sections 85-87 as well as Alma chapters 43-47. Today's message is a massive parenting win.

And I'm not talking about my parenting, just in case you're wondering if I jumped on the boastful bus. Let's take a look at our verse for today. I want to dive straight into it because it's actually, it's inside of our reading for Book of Mormon this week in Alma chapter 43, but it's attached to our messages we've been talking about with Alma sharing his testimony to his son when his son was going through some repentance process.

If you will sneak with me for just a second into last week at the very tail end of Alma chapter 42. We actually see Alma calls his son to preach the word. And so he is preaching to him about repentance, about overcoming his own sins, Corianton's sins, right?

And and being better. And then he calls him to preach the word. And our verse for today is Alma 43, verse one.

What we see here: The results of Alma's testimony bearing to his son. Alma took time to talk about the gospel, doctrine, testify of Jesus Christ, the Atonement. What was that result?

It says in Alma 43:1, "And he also went forth." My friends, isn't that a beautiful parenting moment for Alma? To see his son in struggle and sin, to testify to him, to call him to repentance, to teach doctrine to him in gaps of his knowledge, then to be able to see him out preaching the word, going forth among the people to declare the word. Remember this is Alma the Younger.

This is the Alma that's had his own repentance process. And to see his sons come full circle as well. I'm so grateful for friends, family members, and leaders in the Church that at times in my life have called me to repentance.

I am so grateful to those that have been willing to teach me doctrine. I am so grateful to those that will take time to testify to me of their knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ, of their understanding of what the Atonement is in their lives. This is such a beautiful moment here.

Maybe it's a little tender spot for me as a parent trying to picture Alma and the struggle he had to be facing when seeing his son Corianton make the decision he was making. And yet here in this full circle moment, I can try to imagine the joy that Alma has declaring the word side by side with his sons. My friends, I am grateful for the power of repentance in my life.

I am grateful that the Lord doesn't just see us as flawed individuals who are broken and imperfect. I am grateful that he sees us as what we can be when we are the best version of ourselves. And I am eternally grateful for those that have been able to be in my life to say, "Hey, Allen, you can be better." My friends, may you and I realize the power of the Atonement in our lives.

Our sins, our struggles, they don't define us. The Atonement of Jesus Christ opens the door for us to become so much more and to be. I am grateful for those that held me accountable in my life and continue to do so when I have my moments of struggle.

That is a powerful, powerful lesson we can learn from Alma to his son and the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives. That's all for today, my friends. Lift up your hearts and rejoice. Cleave into the covenants you have made and together we will be savory salt.