Alma 59

59:1-10 - This is a pretty short chapter, but I’m really hoping that we can get some good stuff out of it because it looks promising. CM has just received Helaman’s epistle and “he was exceedingly rejoiced because of the welfare, yea, the exceeding success which Helaman had had, in obtaining those lands which were lost. Yea, and he did make it known unto all his people, in all the land round about in that part where he was, that they might rejoice also.” Honestly, Helaman’s story and his feat is miraculous, it’s an amazing story that inspires, and hearing about the success that he’s had and especially that the Lord is with the SWs giving them unheard of success, that can be very motivational, it really improves the morale which is vital in war time. So I’m a little bit confused about the next part, because it says that the people who were in the cities of Moroni, Lehi, and Morianton had gone over to the city of Nephihah, and then Nephihah was attacked by the Lamanites and it says something about those people going over to join the Lamanites, which I don’t get, but suffice it to say that the Lamanite army “did begin to slay them with an exceedingly great slaughter,” and thus the city of Nephihah was taken by the Lamanites. So despite all his efforts, CM lost that city, but he know “that it was easier to keep the city from falling into the hands of the Lamanites than to retake it from them.” And here is the great metaphor, the IM teaches “Mormon records that it is far easier to keep a city from falling than to retake it. As with cities, so it is with people. It is much more difficult and dangerous to reclaim one who has fallen than to help keep them from falling. In the words of President Ezra Taft Benson, ‘It is better to prepare and prevent, than to repair and repent.” In the book that I’m reading “Putting On the Armor of God,” the author quotes President Spencer W. Kimball as teaching in “The Miracle of Forgiveness” saying “Prevention and avoidance are the keys. President Kimball said, ‘As I study the story of the Redeemer and his temptations, I am certain he spent his energies fortifying himself against temptation rather than battling with it to conquer it.’ Don’t give Satan the opportunity to smother you in an avalanche of unexpected desires. If you would keep your virtue, decide now, ahead of temptation, that you will do nothing that would embarrass you if others knew about it. Don’t wait for the moment of passion when desires are pulling at you and clouding your mind. Decide now, in the calmness and safety of the Holy Spirit’s companionship exactly what you will do and what you will not do. Make the promise to yourself, to your Heavenly Father and to your future spouse. Make that line so clear that Satan will never be able to pull you across.” I thought that it was interesting that I heard this today given that the concept of maintaining vs. reclaiming, I know that I’ve personally dealt with, many times, what it’s like to rebuild myself, my resolve, my spiritual levels after basically walking into Satan’s open arms. Again in the book “Putting on the Armor of God,” the author quotes Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin as teaching, specifically about immorality, but it’s applicable to all forms of sin, “Pornography is all its forms… constitute a spiritual poison that is addictive and destructive. Every ounce of pornography and immoral entertainment will cause you to lose a pound of spirituality. And it will only take a few ounces of immorality to cause you to lost all of you spiritual strength for the Lord’s Spirit will not swell in an unclean temple.” It’s like the Nephites here, when the Lamanites attacked them, once the Lamanites had just entered the city, getting them out and protecting themselves meant killing the ones already inside, plugging the hole and doing it faster than the rest of the Lamanites could make it in; it’s a recipe for disaster. It would have been more effective for the Nephites to spend time before hand building fortifications, getting their weapons ready, training and perfecting their response for when the attack comes. In life for us, we could spend the time when we aren’t overwhelmed with temptations, reading the scriptures, going to church, perfecting the art of praying, making the decisions, learning the truth, so when the time comes, like Christ, we will have fortified ourselves against the strongest onslaught, and weather the storm well enough to not be sunk.

59:11-13 – The Nephites have lost the city of Nephihah, and in the face of all their successes, this waved a red flag for CM and he “was exceedingly sorrowful, and began to doubt, because of the wickedness of the people, whether they should not fall into the hands of their brethren. Now this was the case with all his chief captains. They doubted and marveled also because of the wickedness of the people, and this because of the success of the Lamanites over them.” There was no revelation handed down from God denouncing the wickedness of the people, but those righteous leaders were about to see the “signs” for lack of a better word, and know that they were not being blessed and they knew that the only reason that the Lord would withhold his strength and protection would be because of the unrighteousness of the people, so they put two and two together and figured it out. The IM teaches “the loss of the city of Nephihah illustrates the strong correlation between the wickedness of the Nephites and their inability to defeat their enemies in the ‘strength of the Lord.’ The leaders of the Nephite armies were often men who ‘had the spirit of revelation and also prophecy.’ These righteous military leaders attributed Nephite defeats not to the Lamanites but to Nephite wickedness. By contrast, faithful Nephites were usually able to defend themselves and recover lost cities, often with relatively minimal loss of life. The Lord has repeatedly taught that while we may face difficulties and serious problems, if we are righteous and rely on Him, we can always have confidence that He will be with us and His work will ultimately prevail.” When we are righteous, the Lord is with us and anything is possible, but when we are wicked he have no promise.