Integrating Sunday School Resources Sunday School Lessons; Revelations in Context, Gospel Topics Essays   The good news! The Church has issued new resources on Church history for the coming Sunday School year. The not so good news: The Church has not integrated these resources into the Sunday School curriculum. The solution: We need to do it! Also,… Continue Reading

“Come unto Christ” So much to discuss as we conclude our study of the Book of Mormon this year. Points we will explore this lesson: Mormon’s sublime letter on faith, hope, and charity in Moroni 7 Moroni’s promise in chapter 10–perhaps the most read section of the Book of Mormon. How do we know what is… Continue Reading

“By Faith All Things Are Fulfilled” This lesson contains one of the crown jewels of the Book of Mormon–the sublime verse on weakness and strength in 12:27.   There are other gems worthy of study, discussion, and application in this chapter. We have the idea that we can be the angels whom God uses to answer… Continue Reading

“Never Has Man Believed in Me As Thou Hast” In this lesson we get to discuss the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon (which made up the bulk of the plates as Joseph described them)! What is contained in the sealed portion? What can we learn from the instructions regarding how to access them?… Continue Reading

“I Speak unto You As If Ye Were Present” After Mormon’s final plea to the House of Israel, Moroni takes over the record. His despair and loneliness is palpable and touching in the beginning of Mormon 8. There are several thought provoking gems in these chapters about weakness, pride, caring for the needy, and theological… Continue Reading

“How Could Ye Have Departed from the Ways of the Lord?”   Poignantly placed after the description of the Lehite utopia, these are the darkest, most disturbing chapters in the Book of Mormon. It seems a fitting time to wrestle with the human potential for evil, the reality of the terrible things we do to… Continue Reading

“This Is My Gospel” These chapters include an account of the happiest, most righteous, productive years in all of Book of Mormon history, the model utopian society that endured almost two hundred years after Jesus’ appearance. Unfortunately,  we only read about that time period (which surpasses the time covered by Mosiah, Alma, Helaman, and 3… Continue Reading

“He Did Expound All Things unto Them”   These chapters function as a sermon and reflection about the scriptures. Jesus quotes from Isaiah 54 and Malachi 3-4. He recommends the writings of Isaiah and urges Nephi to supplement his own records. Then in a bittersweet twist, we are excluded from the climax of the story–Mormon… Continue Reading

“Then Will I Gather Them In”   Am I correct in concluding that these chapters fall in that category of scripture that most members read without comprehension? When we think “Isaiah chapters” 2 Nephi comes to mind, but 3 Nephi has its share as well, with some Micah thrown in. These chapters in brief talk… Continue Reading