Whenever Nephi found himself in difficult situations, he drew upon the knowledge of what God did for others who were in similar situations. We'll explore Nephi's story and the similarities to Joseph, Moses, David, Daniel, (maybe Aaron, Hur, and Noah), Solomon, Isaiah, and Samuel. There are likely many others but it is a lesson to us on how we too can likely their stories to ours and find our own strength by expanding our knowledge of God and allowing him to prove himself to us today just as he did for our fathers.

The Lectures on Faith introduces us to 6 characteristic and 6 attributes about God. But is there a clue right there in the scriptures that inform us about the attributes of our Heavenly Mother? We're going to dive into it and explore some different ideas. This one is mostly just a thought experiment where I'm thinking out loud but perhaps you might have some additional thoughts or ideas to take things further.

Some thoughts about how we can tend to thing the scriptures apply to "others" and not us. If we see the scriptures as a mirror, their lessons can be far more profitable to us in our journey. 

A sister-in-law of mine shared a story in her church talk last Sunday that got me thinking about trust in God's wisdom and power when it comes to outside threats.

Contact is one of my favorite movies and it stars Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey in a story that blurs the lines between faith and science. There's one particular scene that has always stuck with me and I think it conveys an important theological idea in a very approachable way.

The story in the Book of Mormon of the Rameumptom hit me a little differently lately as I was thinking of echo chambers and how they can reinforce false narratives. It's easy to get sucked into this at church as well where we want to be "nice" all the time and think challenging others is "contention" by default. It's not. We should challenge each other with love and respect often because it's better for everyone. No idea should be immune from being challenged, otherwise, it is simply propaganda.

We go through the slaying of Laban, and how pondering enabled Nephi to make a very tough decision and a mission story about a string of events that led to a bloody encounter.

Our congregation had a joint fast with a local Muslim community and it was a great experience, I'll tell you about how it all went down.

Jacob noted that the Nephites kept a specific kind of record that contained only spiritual revelations and teachings. I've done the same thing for 20 years and it has been a major game-changer in helping me hear the voice of the Spirit more clearly and discern that from my own thoughts or feelings.

When asked about peace at church, it reminded me of the principles I think about from my favorite story about peace.