Watch the Video Presentation on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/dGTQHmXR6mU
ICEBREAKER
Do you know what alchemy is? Have you ever heard that term before?
Alchemy was a medieval pseudo-science whose major objective was to find a way to create gold from other metals. It was kind of the precursor to modern-day chemistry. Unfortunately for them, this turns out to be impossible. As far as I understand it, gold is an element. But that’s what alchemy was all about, seeking to create gold.
Now a different question related to gold.
In missionary jargon, do you know what a golden investigator is?
I’m not sure if they use that term anymore but when I was a full-time missionary, a golden investigator was one that was ready and enthusiastic about receiving the gospel. Those embrace it readily and with eagerness. The kind of just seem to walk right into the font. And it’s wonderful when that kind of thing happens and usually, it’s the Lord that has done all the preparation work beforehand. But how often do you think that kind of thing happens? I think it’s fairly rare. Most people that we wish to share the gospel with aren't going to be golden to begin with. But that shouldn't deter us.
Though actual alchemy is impossible. Spiritual alchemy IS possible. Through our efforts, and God’s help, we can help to create golden investigators out of those that may seem hard-hearted, uninterested, or even hostile at first.
So that’s our goal today. We are going to learn the art of spiritual alchemy from a master. His name: Ammon. If you’re already familiar with the Book of Mormon, you probably know the Ammon story. It’s a consistent favorite for many, especially young men I’ve discovered. They seem to relish the Arnold Friberg imagery of a young man with bulging muscles defending the flocks of the king with his sling and sword, lopping off arms left and right, single-handedly fighting off a band of robbers. But, if all we get from this story is a hoorah for his manly, and courageous display of power, then we’ve totally missed the point. The real value of this story is not in Ammon’s ability to defend, but to declare, not in his ability to cut off arms, but to cut off misunderstanding, and not in his ability to fight, but to instill faith. That’s the lesson I think we want our students to walk away with.
Now, if you start to squirm in your seat and feel pangs of guilt every time the term missionary work is brought up, I think the Ammon story is for you. Ammon is going to show us an incredibly unintimidating, effective, and natural way of proclaiming of the gospel. And yes, there are times when I think it’s appropriate to boldly share your faith. You know, with the person you’re sitting next to on the plane, or doing door contacts as a full-time missionary, or when you know your time with that person will be short. But what about those people with whom you may have a little more time to work with? Family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, the less active. Is the direct approach always the best? Maybe not. The moment of invitation, or testifying, or sharing your faith doesn’t always need to be the first step. There is so much more that can go into missionary work before we even get to that. And yet, it is missionary work. You may have already been doing missionary work with somebody and not even realized it. With Ammon, boldly declaring his faith is one of the last steps we see him take. He does so much more before the topic of religion ever even comes up with those he wishes to save. And when it does come up, it comes naturally, without forcing it or awkwardness.
TEACHING SUGGESTION
Perhaps a quick teaching suggestion here that I’ve found works well, especially with younger audiences. Sometimes it’s easy with a longer narrative like the Ammon story to get bogged down in the elements of the story. If you want to review the story of these chapters quickly with your class, bring in a box with the word “Ammon” written across the front. And inside that box, gather up the following items. A missionary name tag, one of those Burger King crowns, some Mr. Potato Head or action figure arms that I’ve removed, a sling, a plastic sword, and a stuffed animal of a sheep. If you don’t have these items lying around, you could always print out pictures of them if you like. I then ask if there is anyone who feels they know the Ammon story well enough to summarize it. Invite them to the front and have them use the objects to tell the story to the class. As they tell it, you as the teacher can fill in any significant details that you feel they miss or ask the class if they have anything to add. This turns out to be a really effective and brief way to refresh their memory about the story while still giving you the bulk of the time to focus on the message of these chapters, which is really what we want to do as teachers.
TRANSITION
But all right, back to spiritual alchemy. Let’s begin by looking at the materials Ammon has to begin with and then compare that to what he eventually helps to create. Compare the description of the Lamanites in 17:14 with the words of King Lamoni in 18:20 and what do you notice?
The Lamanites were described as being wild, hardened, ferocious, and delighted in murdering Nephites and robbing them. Wow! Sounds just like the kind of a place you’d like to be called to serve a mission? Right. For us, it might be like opening your mission call and it saying, you are hereby called to serve in the Syria, ISIS mission. We may not be too eager to serve there. But then, compare that with what King Lamoni ends up saying to Ammon just a chapter later: “Thou mayest speak boldly and tell me concerning these things”. King Lamoni is asking Ammon to teach him the gospel and not the other way around. How did we get there? Well, it certainly didn’t start out that way between these two. In fact, the very first thing that happens to Ammon when he walks into the borders of King Lamoni's land is that he’s arrested and dragged before the King so that he can decide whether he will slay him, throw him into prison, or cast him out of his lands. So how do we go from that, to “Speak boldly to me Ammon”? That’s the alchemy we’re talking about. It’s miraculous. And for us, if people we know don’t seem to appear “ golden", Maybe we can try what Ammon did.
SEARCH
What we’re going to do is fill out this chart to see how we got from point A to point B. This handout will be available as a download at https://www.etsy.com/shop/TeachingWithPower. Notice that talking boldly about the church is at the very end of this process. You can engage in all these other “missionary” efforts without even saying a word about religion.
PREPARE YOURSELF FIRST
If you wish to prepare others to receive the gospel, you must first prepare yourself. Ammon makes sure to get himself on higher ground before he ever attempts to lift others up. And I have a marking activity for you here. In Alma 17:2-13, take two different marking pencils and in one color mark everything that Ammon has done to prepare himself to be a missionary. And with the other color, mark everything you see God doing for Ammon as a result of his efforts.
So, what are the things that Ammon and the other sons of Mosiah have done to prepare themselves?
:2 They searched the scriptures diligently. You can’t share something that you don’t already have yourself. Like the Lord says in D&C 11:21 21 Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men. You don’t need to know everything about the gospel to be a missionary, but you should obtain a fairly good grasp of the word. He says they "waxed” strong in the knowledge of the truth. Waxed suggests enlarging something slowly over time. It’s a process. We need to be patient with ourselves as we gain that knowledge. Still, it’s hard to teach something that you don’t know. So how’s your scripture study going?
:3 They gave themselves to much prayer and fasting. That’s something we’re all capable of doing. Prayer and fasting combined can be immensely effective. What could we pray and fast for? An increased understanding. A stronger testimony. More courage to share. And maybe most importantly, opportunities to share. That really changes things. I think you’ll notice that opportunities present themselves more frequently when you do that. One, probably because you’ll be looking for them, and two, the Lord will be doing his part to bring them to you. Who better to present with opportunities than somebody who is desiring to have them and who he knows is going to seize that opportunity. God will place people in your path that you can influence and help. So, are you willing to pray and fast?
:5 This verse tells us that they had suffered many afflictions. Part of being prepared is to realize that it won’t be easy. There will be physical challenges, but more importantly, there will be spiritual ones. It says that they had “much labor” in the spirit. On my full-time mission, it wasn’t all the walking, studying, and contacting that was the hardest labor. Being rejected at the doorstep over and over again didn’t really bother me much. The hardest labor was the labor of the spirit. You know, when you would get into a home and you would teach people and they felt the Spirit and you begin to have hopes for their conversion and you really begin to love them. And then, for one reason or another, change their minds, or start avoiding you, or they give up when opposition comes. That was the hardest labor. Praying for these people, loving them, and then sometimes having them reject you after all that. That was difficult. Realize that missionary work is going to be hard work. Nothing worthwhile in life ever comes easy. So, are you willing to labor in the spirit and face some hardship?
:6 Be prepared to sacrifice. The sons of Mosiah had given up a kingdom to become missionaries. What are we willing to sacrifice? Some young men women may sacrifice scholarships, employment opportunities, relationships, all the comforts of home, and money in order to serve full-time missions. But what else may we have to sacrifice in order to be member missionaries? Comfort? Time? The possibility of rejection? Ridicule? Missionary work requires sacrifice. So, are you willing to make sacrifices?
:9 Tells us something specific that they prayed and fasted for. The Spirit. Missionary work requires the accompaniment of the Spirit. You’re going to need it because every individual is different. I love the church’s Preach my Gospel program that encourages the missionary to rely on the Holy Ghost for guidance. Preaching the gospel is a one-by-one type of work, not "one-size-fits-all”. If we remain worthy of it, the Spirit will be there to help us know how best to help somebody. It doesn’t guarantee that they will accept our invitations, but will put us in the best possible circumstances. So, are you willing to fast and pray for the Spirit?
:12 took courage. Missionary work requires boldness and courage. It’s not easy to strike up that gospel conversation with that person sitting next to you. It’s not easy to invite that neighbor out to church or the ward activity, it’s not easy to bring up your faith with your coworker, and the Spirit is going to help us to know the right time to do that is. But we must have courage when the opportunities to testify do present themselves. So, are you willing to be courageous in your efforts to proclaim the gospel?
:13 they supposed that great was the work they had undertaken. The message here? Catch the vision of missionary work. Realize the importance and the gravity of what you are doing when you seek to share God’s word. This is the salvation of souls we’re talking about here. This is the most important work you can do. One of my favorite places to see this is in Doctrine and Covenants 4. I love the words that it uses to describe missionary work. It calls it a marvelous work. It’s not just good, it’s marvelous. it asks if you have desires to serve God, so it’s a desirable and rewarding work. Then it reads "o ye that embark in the service of God". A mission isn’t something you merely go on or even serve, it’s something you embark on, like an adventure, or an epic, or a great journey. Such fantastic words to describe this work. So, have you caught the vision? Do you see the work as marvelous?
Well, there are more things you can probably find in these chapters about being prepared to serve, but this will suffice for us now. These are going to lay the groundwork for you.
Then look at the promises God makes to those who are willing to prepare themselves in this way.
He will cause you to rejoice exceedingly
Give you a sound understanding
The spirit of prophecy and revelation
And the ability to teach with power and authority of God
Much success (and success doesn’t necessarily have to be measured in conversion)
Become “instruments in the hands of God”.
God will visit us with his Spirit and comfort us in our afflictions.
As you can see, great blessings promised to those that are willing to prepare themselves. This is just the beginning though and should be an ongoing process. This is just about preparing ourselves to go out and be instruments in God’s hands. Once we’ve shaped ourselves into tools, God can put us to work.
THE AMMON APPROACH
Now let's take a look at the rest of the verses in our process here and pick out phrases from Ammon’s example that best describes how we can create gold. As we go through these items though, keep in mind that they aren’t necessarily steps that you check off like list and then move on to the next. Most are simultaneous and don’t always have to move in this specific order. We should keep them all in mind as we go through this process.
17:11 Be patient in long-suffering and afflictions, that ye may show forth good examples unto them in me.
Two things here. Missionary work requires patience and long-suffering. Usually, conversion is not an overnight process. It takes time. Don’t expect immediate results. Don’t become impatient when people don’t immediately latch on to our message. You can’t expect conversion to happen on your timetable. It’s a long game. I mean, think about it, we are asking individuals to completely change their lives, let go of deeply held beliefs, traditions, and in some cases, their reputations with their friends and families. It is no small request. Be patient with people. Give the time for the bond to set. And don’t give up on them. They are going to need lots of support and opportunities and invitations.
And we need to show forth good examples unto them. That may be one of the greatest testimonies we bear. The type of people we are is one of our greatest missionary tools. On occasion, I’ve heard my dad say that the greatest testimony Joseph Smith ever bore of his divine calling as a prophet are the members of the Church of Jesus Christ themselves. They are his evidence. They are the best proof of the truthfulness of the restored Church. Others watch us. And when they see our faith, our convictions, our blessings, our willingness to sacrifice, they may begin to desire that as well. I have known many converts that when asked what first attracted them to the church, often, the answer I hear. It was the example of a devoted member simply living their faith. Living the gospel is doing missionary work. Now when you hear that, you might start to think, oh good, that’s what I wanted to hear. I just need to be a good example. So I’ll just live the gospel, and they’ll see all the blessings I get, and eventually, they’ll look at me and say, Wow, I want all those good things too, please baptize me now! That’s not necessarily how it works. Being a good example is huge, but it’s just a step in the right direction. There is more to this process. Sometimes it’s easy to just stop at this step. It’s an important step, but there is so much more that we can do. Let’s continue on.
17:25. Something more we can do is what Ammon does in 17:25. After he walks into the Lamanite lands, he’s immediately arrested (surprise, surprise) and brought before the king. But he doesn’t immediately open his mouth and say “Hello, I’m Elder Ammon, and I’m a missionary from the Church of Jesus Christ and I’m here to teach you the truths of the gospel and correct the wicked traditions of your fathers so that you can be happy like us Nephites. Would you like to hear my message?” How do you think that would have gone over? He probably wouldn’t have lasted long. But no, what does he say? I’m here to dwell among you and serve you. That may be one of the best approaches we can take as missionaries. And notice he doesn’t say, I’ll stick around and serve you just long enough to see if you’re interested in hearing my message, but if not, I’ll move on. No, in verse 23 he says he’ll stick around perhaps until the day he dies. Ammon is in it for the long haul. Whether they accept him or not isn’t the deciding factor of whether he stays or not. One way or another he’s going to stay true to them. I think that attitude is key for us in our missionary efforts. Our desire to serve them is not contingent upon their acceptance. People can usually see right through that kind of motivation. So I serve them, for services’ sake. I help them, because I want to help them, not because I’m hoping for a great story to tell over the pulpit. I look for opportunities to serve. I help them fix their car, lay their sod, take care of their dog while they’re on vacation, move furniture, whatever it is. I look for chances to serve, I pray for them to come and I seize those opportunities when they do. This attitude of Ammon's obviously has a profound impact on the King. I mean, here the son of a Nephite King is willing to serve the king of the enemy. He even offers him one of his daughters as a wife. But Ammon is not there for romance, he’s not serving in order to get something back. He just wants to serve.
Now, has Ammon said anything about religion yet? No. Hasn’t come up.
Well, you know what happens next in the story. He puts Ammon in charge of his flocks, thieves come in to scatter them. The other servants fear for their lives, and here we get our next phrase in
17:29 He sees an opportunity to win their hearts.
That’s what we need to look for. Opportunities to win hearts through our service There may come times when something comes into the life of that individual where they need extra help, comfort, or guidance. So you be there for them. When tragedy strikes, or a job loss, or sickness, or injury, or catastrophe. Go the extra mile in those situations. Reach out to them. Support them. Counsel them. Love them. This is how you win hearts.
And a big piece of making that possible comes in the next verse. And this one is more of an attitude than an action, but what would you mark in
17:30. Those whom he termed to be his brethren. The attitude is to consider them your brethren. Your friends. We don’t do missionary work out of a mere sense of duty, or obligation, or for our own glory. I’m convinced that people can sense when we care about them and when we consider them as equals. Non-members don’t often feel that from members, or less active families from active families or youth from adults. They may sense that we feel superior to them. If we wish to win hearts, then a sense of brotherhood or sisterhood must be there.
Well, Ammon helps them to gather the sheep. Sadly, the robbers return and this time he fights them off with this sling and his sword, slaying some, and cutting off the arms of others.
Our next key phrase is going to come from
18:3 What does the king now realize about Ammon? Key phrase? We know that he is a friend to the king. By the way that we live and serve and treat others, they come to know that we are their friends, their true friends. They may say something like, well, that Wilcox guy across the street, he may have some strange ideas about religion. I’m not sure about what he believes, but there is one thing I know, he’s my friend. Maybe there are some more disinterested youth in our classes or youth programs, and they say, well, I’m not so wild about going to church or these service projects, but one thing I know brother or sister so and so is my friend. I can tell they sincerely cares about me.
And we could take this idea step one further with verse 10. Not only does King Lamoni come to realize that Ammon is a friend but what kind of friend is he?
He is one of his most faithful servants or friends. For us, do people come to conclusions like, my Church of Jesus Christ neighbor is the best neighbor I’ve ever had, my Church of Jesus Christ friend is the most faithful friend I’ve ever had, my Church of Jesus Christ employee, is the most hard-working, honest, and dedicated employee I’ve ever had.
Now in the Ammon story, as he comes to realize this, something begins to happen inside King Lamoni. We learn in verse 5 that:
5 Now this was the tradition of Lamoni, which he had received from his father, that there was a Great Spirit. Notwithstanding they believed in a Great Spirit they supposed that whatsoever they did was right; nevertheless, Lamoni began to fear exceedingly, with fear lest he had done wrong in slaying his servants;
Something has begun to happen inside of Lamoni. His heart is beginning to change. It’s being won over by Ammon’s example. There is an awakening of his conscience. As the people, we work with see our good examples, and our willingness to serve, and the strength of our character, and our loyal friendship, they may begin to wonder if there is something to our beliefs. Maybe, I do want to know a little more about their lifestyle. What makes these devoted members of the church tick? Maybe I want what they have in my life.
Has Ammon said anything about religion yet? No.
Then look at what King Lamoni says in verse 11
11 Now I surely know that this is the Great Spirit, and I would desire him that he come in unto me, but I durst not.
And then at the end of verse 14
14 Therefore Ammon turned himself unto the king, and said unto him: What wilt thou that I should do for thee, O king? And the king answered him not for the space of an hour, according to their time, for he knew not what he should say unto him.
Perhaps the people we associate with begin to feel the same way. And how do we respond? Hey, wait a minute. That’s my line. That’s how I’m supposed to feel. I’m the one that would desire to share with you, but durst not. I’m the one who doesn’t know what to say. And I really believe that this kind of thing happens more often than we think, or could happen more often if we were to consciously lay the same groundwork that Ammon does here. They will feel a desire to come to us.
But, since they may feel that way, it’s vital that we look for the opportunity to speak up to them. We can’t just sit around waiting for them to come to us. There is a moment where we speak up. There is the moment where we open our mouths. I think it’s important to note that it is Ammon who breaks the silence in verse 16, who ends the standoff. This is where you need to look for opportunities to bring your faith into the conversation. To openly speak of your faith. To mention church activities and practices. You might ask, but how will I know when it’s the right time to do this? Verse 16, Be filled with the spirit and follow it when the prompting comes. That’s why we need to have earned the spirit of revelation and prophecy way back at the beginning of this process.
It’s only at this point where King Lamoni finally says “Thou mayest speak boldly” to me.
And then the rest of the story is wonderful. You know what happens. Ammon teaches him the gospel, the King is overwhelmed by the Spirit, he’s converted, and eventually, all of his people are as well. Iron has become gold. Hostility has become friendship.
Now, have you ever had an Ammon experience? Have you ever seen this process work? This spiritual alchemy. It does!
If possible, share a missionary experience.
Doctrine and Covenants 18:15 And if it so be the you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!” One of the strongest associations in the scriptures with missionary work is joy. I’ve felt that joy and I hope we all can.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
How can you prepare yourself to be a better missionary?
Who specifically in your life could you seek to be an Ammon to now?
What steps of the Ammon approach could you implement into your relationship with them?
When have felt the joy of missionary work? What happened?
CONCLUSION
I hope that Ammon has helped inspire you to become a greater representative of Jesus Christ’s church. I know it’s done that for me. As I've prepared this lesson I’ve felt a greater desire to consciously make greater efforts in this area. This commitment to proclaim the gospel is part of the covenant we made when we were baptized. To stand as witnesses of God at all times, and in all things, and in all places. I know that it’s easy to think that missionary work is just for the full-time missionaries. Not so. The full-time missionaries are only assigned to certain areas for months, but we may have that neighbor, or friend, or family member for years. The prep work, the alchemy, the Ammon approach, that is what we can do. That’s our part in God’s grand gathering of Israel. The full-time missionaries are there to pick up where we left off in this story. We prepare them, and the missionaries can teach them. But we get to help get them to that point. We can do this! And when it works how great shall be our joy!
2 WONDERFUL WOMEN
ICEBREAKER
I love Alma 19. It’s somewhat of a rare chapter in the Book of Mormon. For whatever reason, we don’t have as many female role models in the Book of Mormon. But chapter 19 gives us two! What a great opportunity we have to honor these two women of faith from latter-day scripture. And as an Icebreaker, I usually like to ask a simple question. Who would be willing to tell us about a woman whose example inspires you? And then let a few people share their stories.
So here are two more for our list. Two Lamanite women with a lot to teach us. King Lamoni’s wife (we’ll call her Queen Lamoni), and a servant woman named Abish. One of the few women mentioned by name in the Book of Mormon. Their stories are short but powerful.
To present this, I would divide my class into pairs and assign one to read 19:1-13, 29-30, and the other to read 19:14-17,28-31. The first group will look for what we learn from Queen Lamoni’s example and the other what we learn from Abish. And then give them an opportunity to teach the other person in their pair what they learned.
My thoughts on these two great women.
With Queen Lamoni. We have to examine this story from her perspective. She wasn’t there to see Ammon defend the King’s flocks. She wasn’t there to see the evidence of the arms Ammon had cut. She wasn’t there to hear Ammon’s teachings to the king, and she wasn’t there to see how her husband had been overcome by the Spirit. When she arrives on the scene, all she can see is the lifeless body of her husband and the stories from her servants of a powerful Nephite responsible for the situation. As a Lamanite, I think that we can assume that she has been taught to distrust and perhaps even hate Nephites. Some of her servants believe that Lamoni is dead, but she’s not too quick to jump to that conclusion. So she calls for Ammon. And notice what Ammon does, he doesn’t immediately bring the King out of his sleep. He says the King wouldn’t wake up until the next day. Now, this is a bit of a test of faith, isn’t it? She doesn’t know Ammon. She’s only been told things about him. The evidence suggests foul play. And here he’s saying, oh yeah, he’ll wake up tomorrow. Someone more skeptical might think, oh sure, so you can get out of town before you’re discovered. But she doesn’t react that way. She just believes without seeing. She says:
9 And Ammon said unto her: Believest thou this? And she said unto him: I have had no witness save thy word, and the word of our servants; nevertheless I believe that it shall be according as thou hast said.
She’s a sterling example of the gift of the Spirit mentioned in D&C 46:13-14
13 To some it is given by the Holy Ghost to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that he was crucified for the sins of the world.
14 To others it is given to believe on their words, that they also might have eternal life if they continue faithful.
Queen Lamoni is a part of that latter group. She doesn’t have to see. She’s able to believe the words of others. That is exceeding faith. King Lamoni believed because of what he saw, Queen Lamoni believed the witness of others who said they saw.
No wonder Ammon says:
Blessed art thou because of thy exceeding faith; I say unto thee, woman, there has not been such great faith among all the people of the Nephites.
And interestingly, I love this, who is the first of the two who gets to testify of Jesus Christ to the people. It’s Queen Lamoni. She awakes first and begins to testify of there experience. How fitting. The first shall be last, and the last shall be first.
I hope that we can be like Queen Lamoni. Willing to believe the words of those who have seen miraculous things. We weren’t there to witness the First Vision or see Moroni deliver the plates to Joseph Smith, we didn’t see Moses part the Red Sea or Christ heal the leper. Maybe we don’t receive revelation on behalf of the entire church like President Nelson, and maybe we haven’t witnessed great physical miracles in our life, but are we willing to believe on the words of those who have? The Lord sometimes asks us to believe the testimonies of others and to act on that belief until he sends the promised confirmation. So many nowadays will say “show me, and I’ll believe it”. God responds with “Believe it, and I’ll show you”. Queen Lamoni was the type who believed first, and then was shown. I hope we can be like her.
Now Abish. What does she teach us? Again, look at this situation from her perspective. She had been converted many years before on account of a vision of her Father. Like Queen Lamoni, she also believed because of the words of another. But imagine what those ensuing years must have been like for her. To believe but have little support in that belief. She didn’t have the structure of the outward church to bolster her up. No access to prophets, baptism, or scripture. And yet, she continued to believe and act as a disciple of Christ. Would we be willing to live that way without the social structure of the church and its programs around us? Would we still live the gospel when nobody would know or care whether we did or not? This is true conversion. The kind that lives and believes regardless of outward circumstances. Abish maintains her faith in isolation. She also makes me think of all those dedicated members of the church out there who live in areas where the church may not well established. Many living in small branches, far removed from official chapels and temples. Perhaps they are the only members in their neighborhoods or within their families. I admire these believers so much. These Abish’s. Would I remain faithful if all of this were taken away? I hope so, but wow, if any of you out there are in that situation, who have little by the way of church structure and support and community, I respect you so much. We would all do good to consider if we are capable of living faithful in solitude? Abish was able to.
I also love her enthusiasm in this story. You can almost see her running from door to door testifying of the great things that God was doing among them. Such hope and joy in her voice. Finally, she has the chance to share her faith and she seizes it. I hope that we can be like Abish in that respect too. When we have opportunities to share our faith, let’s take advantage of them with joy! Our enthusiasm and zeal for the restored gospel can be contagious and bring others running to see the power of God.
Queen Lamoni and Abish, two wonderful women of faith. I’m very grateful for their example, as well as the examples of the wonderful women in my life.
SUMMARY QUESTIONS
Well, there is so much more we could talk about in these chapters and we’ve really only looked at 17-19 in depth. Instead of doing an entire lesson on the remainder of these chapters, perhaps I’ll just give you a few things to look for in summary. In chapter 20, we see Lamoni’s first challenge to his faith. His father. Oftentimes this is the case with new converts. Their faith is going to be tried and often from those closest to them. What does chapter 20 teach you about facing and overcoming the opposition that so often follows conversion? Chapters 21 and 22 relate Aaron’s experience with teaching the gospel, which starts out very differently from Ammon's. Compare and contrast Aaron’s experience with Ammon's. What do you notice? And then you could do an entire other lesson on how both Ammon and Aaron are examples of how to teach the gospel effectively when you do get that chance. Next week, I am going to cover some additional ideas from chapter 22. There are some things that King Lamoni’s father teaches us about conversion that thematically, I’d like to include there.
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