Do I,...and am I...and can I?

I was talking to my sister the other day about the sparsity of my scripture reading...and my 'spiritual musing' lack-ness since....well, honestly...3 years ago. I guess that dates me to just starting my master's program at BYU.

Things just got in the way.

I was reading in 2 Nephi 5 tonight, and I came across 2 verses that made me reflect on my conversation with my sister...and it made me make some commitments. Nephi is talking about how the Lord commanded him to make the plates, and that he was to "engraven many things upon them which are good in my sight, for the profit of thy people".

Nephi's response...

"Wherefore, I, Nephi, to be obedient to the commandments of the Lord, went and made these plates..." (2 Nephi 5: 30-31) Wow. Nephi was an amazing person. He WENT and DID...right when the Lord commanded him. He was so in tune, and right there...

So then, I started to think, Do I....listen to God when He speaks to me? And am I...in tune enough to hear Him? And can I...change some things in my life right now so that I might more allow God to speak to me, to command me, and to bless me?

I have lots of changes to be made. I think I'll start tonight with a better, more sincere prayer to Him.

The Words of the Gospel

For some reason today I was thinking about a long time ago-sometime after returning from my mission to Taiwan, that I had listened to a talk by Elder Richard G. Scott. I don't remember what talk it was, nor where I found it, but I do remember one specific thing he said.

He promised that for those who had learned a language in their mission, that if they would read from the Book of Mormon every day in that language, they would never ever forget it. It seems like I've forgotten that promise...and I needed the reminder today.

Instead of reading in Chinese today, I listened to a conference talk. I was amazed at how fast the language sounded for me, and I couldn't keep up. I was brought back to the memories of trying to translate word for word my MTC teachers' prayers, and getting lost and left behind, feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders to learn the language.

But today, even though it was rapid for me and I couldn't catch my breath between the words, a few simple phrases stuck out to me and I was reminded how much I love the gospel language in chinese. It penetrated my heart and strengthened my testimony to hear the words "The Spirit will guide you", and "Blessings of the gospel".

I'm blessed...and I need to remember just how great the "Words of the Gospel" are to me...in any language.