In the book of 1 Nephi chapter 15, Lehi’s family is still traversing through the wilderness on their way to the promised land. It’s an extremely difficult situation, but Jesus Christ has given them a compass of sorts that works on faith called the Liahona. This is akin to the Holy Spirit in our lives, which will guide us only and always when we have faith. The problem is, though, that Nephi’s older brothers Laman and Lemuel consistently forget the mercies of the Lord thus far in their lives and lose their faith, so the Liahona can only work some of the time.
Lehi and his family examine the Liahona
Lately I’ve been appreciating the Holy Ghost in my life more than I have before. Starting college has been a huge change, and there’s been a lot to get used to. But having the Spirit guiding me even just a little has made the transition so much easier. I’ve been guided a lot lately, in seemingly small ways, but they’ve helped me feel the Lord’s love for me. For example, I have a beautiful turquoise water bottle that I bought a couple of months ago. Somehow, I always end up bringing it places and then not bringing it back home with me. So, on one of these occasions, I noticed that I had misplaced my precious water bottle and went to check the lost and found. It wasn’t there, so I gave up hope and started using one of those useless clear ones.
Nearly two weeks later, I was walking home from class when I had the feeling that I should go into the Wilkinson Center (the student center at BYU). Just inside the door, there was a club offering free cotton candy, and I got to have their last serving. Enjoying my cotton candy immensely, I kept walking, and had a feeling that I should go downstairs. So I did. And if you can believe it, there was another club, this one giving out free snickerdoodles! Munching on my cookie, I got one last prompting, this time to go to the Lost and Found. I walked in the room and, lo and behold, my water bottle had been found just earlier that day! My heart felt like it was literally swelling within me with joy.Don’t get me wrong, I was overjoyed to have my water bottle back and to have gotten delicious treats on top of that, but it was more than that. God seemed to be saying to me, “Just wanted to remind you that I love you. Even in the silly little things, I love you.”
Nephi is one of the strongest, best examples of faith. He never questions God, not one single time. And having experienced the happiness that comes from the guidance of the Spirit, how can I ever act in ways that take me away from that? Nephi chooses to trust and obey the Lord, even at hard times like when all his family is complaining, or when his brothers want to murder him. My trials are very different from Nephi’s, but the Lord’s promise in 1 Corinthians 10:13 still holds: “…God…will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” So how can I ever complain? The Mormon belief is that we have the full ability to choose the right in every situation. I have experienced the joy of having the Holy Spirit with me to guide me. I know how wonderful and satisfying as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known to others as the “Mormon” religion) living the gospel of Jesus Christ completely is. I know God wants me to succeed and to always have the ability to hear the Spirit telling me things like where my water bottle is, or whom I need to show a little extra love to, or an idea for a paper I have to write, etc. God lives and loves me.
By Lydia T.
Lydia is a freshman at BYU. She loves music, reading, hiking, and cooking.
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