the enemies of the early church tried desperately to destroy the narrative and the impact of the Book of Mormon. to a degree they were successful by pointing out all the inconsistencies they felt they had discovered within its accounts. 

But Anachronisms have a funny way of turning around with a little time and effort. Over the last almost two hundred years since its publication, many of those anachronisms have turned to testimonies of its truthfulness. 

Today, we'll take a look at some of them and see where they stand now.

It seems life today is full of contention and disputations. We see it everywhere, most particularly on the T.V. News. But that may not be the best measure to use. The News needs contention and disputations in order to hold the public's interest. Hopefully your life is not as full of drama as the world seems to offer. In any event the question remains...is it possible to live in a world without constant contention, , and disputations, and drama, at every turn?

Well, yes, it is. The Book of Mormon tells us of many times that the people lived in peace and prosperity. It clearly shows us how they achieved that, and also, how they lost that. So, are those lessons we can learn today? And if so, how can we apply them? 

The Book of Mormon was written for us, so the lessons in it must be for meant for us as well. Let's see if we can take them to heart. 

They say that timing is everything...in almost everything that we do. I believe that when it comes to the Book of Mormon, the timing of its appearance to the world was and remains one of the most impressive elements of it. To say the things it says and to realize that it said them well before the rest of the academic and scientific world caught up is one of the things that makes it great as well as unique. 

Today we are going to explore some of those things. I hope you enjoy it and find it illuminating.

We can be stubborn creatures. We tend to get set in our ways  and firm in our opinions, leaving little room for ways we are not familiar with. In the Book of Mormon this was exhibited by the pride of the people and their unwillingness to humble themselves before God. But as Alma encountered the Zoramites he found a people who had been compelled to humble themselves, not because of the word of God but because of their extreme poverty. but this gave him the wonderful opportunity to teach them about faith and humility...true humility.

I suspect there are some lessons in there for us. I invite you to listen!

Both Nephi and Paul cried out, "O wretched man that I am". these were two of the most righteous and valiant men of the scriptures, and if they are wretched men, then what hope do we have?

As we were sent to earth, it was with the understanding that we would have flaws and weaknesses built in. We know that because the Lord himself told us so. As a result, we find ourselves committing sin on occasion, even as we know the right thing to do. Why is that? Well, be of good cheer; there is hope for us all. 

The book of Helaman is a rich source of history and intrigue as the Nephites and the Lamanites approach the Meridian of Time and the birth of the Savior. here is where we see the introduction and early gains of the Gadianton Robbers, the large migration of many of the Nephites and Lamanites to the lands to the far north, even as far as the Great Lakes...and we are introduced to Samuel, the Lamanite and his precise and profound prophesies concerning both the birth and the death of the Savior. 

I invite you to join me for this discussion as we see if there is anything that we might apply to our lives today.

Resurrection... our resurrection, is at the heart of the plan of Salvation. But it turns out to be one of the hardest elements of the gospel plan to believe in.  Today we are going to take a hard look at the doctrine and nature of resurrection and see if we can figure out why that is.

We are also going to examine the nature of the resurrected beings that have helped restore our gospel in this last dispensation and see what we can learn about them...and hopefully, what we can look forward to for ourselves when the time comes and we are resurrected. 

For centuries, Priests and teachers have lectured us and warned us of the horrors of Hell, and the terrible judgements of God that await the sinner. But latter-day revelation has shed new light on the subject and I think, perhaps, it's time to modify our thinking on those subjects just a bit. 

How does Hell fit in with our understanding of the three degrees of glory... and... does God really punish us, or are we just victims of our own actions and the consequences that follow?

I invite you to join me for a discussion on these interesting topics.

The book of 1st Nephi is an extraordinary tale of the departure of Lehi and his family from Jerusalem into the wilderness and the eight year saga that ensued. The rich detail that accompanies this tale is remarkable for its specificity and the fact that almost two hundred years of research have only strengthened its claim of authenticity.

I hope you find it as interesting as I did. 

For some, the challenge to balance obedience to a commandment against the exercise of our God-given agency can be a tough road to navigate. But it needn't be. The Lord and the modern-day prophets have told us clearly how we can do this and they are very consistent. All we have to do is listen very carefully.