It was nice to already know the number of the lesson without looking...it's the little things :).
We talked about the Book of Mormon being the keystone of our religion. If it is not true, then the rest of it isn't either. We discussed the witnesses' testimonies. We went over how in the title page written by Moroni it lays out the three purposes of the Book of Mormon, which according to the manual are....
"To show the remnant of the house of Israel the great things the Lord has done for their fathers; to teach the covenants required by the Lord; and to convince all people that Jesus is the Christ, manifesting Himself to all nations."
All of the quotes from the manual came from this talk by President Benson (who was the prophet when I was baptized :) )
http://lds.org/liahona/2011/10/the-book-of-mormon-keystone-of-our-religion?lang=eng&query=book+mormon+benson
This is one of my favorite quotes from the talk..
"It is not just that the Book of Mormon teaches us truth, though it indeed does that. It is not just that the Book of Mormon bears testimony of Christ, though it indeed does that, too. But there is something more. There is a power in the book which will begin to flow into your lives the moment you begin a serious study of the book. You will find greater power to resist temptation. You will find the power to avoid deception. You will find the power to stay on the strait and narrow path. The scriptures are called “the words of life” (see D&C 84:85), and nowhere is that more true than it is of the Book of Mormon. When you begin to hunger and thirst after those words, you will find life in greater and greater abundance."
One of the major things the Book of Mormon proved is that the Lord has more to say to us than is revealed within the Bible. We are able to hear from a prophet's voice today and the last word in the quote above reminded of the First Presidency message in the Ensign this month, wherein President Monson speaks of living the abundant life, simple as A, B, C :)...
http://lds.org/ensign/2012/01/living-the-abundant-life?lang=eng
We touched on the fact that we have gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon, but that it doesn't just stay. It's something we have to work at or it will slip away. When I was studying the lesson I thought of Joseph Smith and all he went through and it made me think of this passage from Joseph Smith History 1:23-25...
http://lds.org/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1?lang=eng
and how often we suffer through different aspects of life, sometimes our testimonies . However, I believe that most of us have had experiences that are powerful and undeniable, or the Spirit has spoken to us soft but sure. So much so that we can not deny what we know to be true. I thought of the talk by the apostle who spoke of riding his bike in the dark and using his pedaling to light his way home. How, iff he slowed his pedaling he could not see to find his way and if he kept pedaling he could see better. I am thankful for the experiences in my life that have kept me pedaling when I wasn't sure if I was headed in the right direction or when I was just plain tired of pedaling. How sometimes I have pedaled so hard and the light was so bright I could see clearly in front of me and feel of the love and glory that lies ahead. I know with all of my heart that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. There is a Prophet on the earth today. That we have a home waiting for us like none other. Keep pedaling!
This coming Sunday's reading is 1 Nephi 1-7, easy peasy.
