The Book of Mormon is True!

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Sunday morning session of the October 1999 conference.

It is a tender mercy to have read this session this week as I've pondered resolutions, goals, direction, and such, as part of beginning a new year.

In this session then Elder Russell M. Nelson ended his talk with this, speaking of the Book of Mormon, "In addition, this book can help with personal problems in a very real way. Do you want to get rid of a bad habit? Do you want to improve relationships in your family? Do you want to increase your spiritual capacity? Read the Book of Mormon! It will bring you closer to the Lord and His loving power."

I've never not known that the Book of Mormon is true. My family read it together several times (I don't remember how many, but it was definitely more than just once) while I was growing up. My father and his father both loved and studied the Book of Mormon throughout their lives, and often shared their insights and testimonies. 

I was over fifty before I realized what a phrase from my patriarchal blessing meant. A friend at church and I were chatting while waiting for our husbands and children to complete some business, and she said that she had observed that I have the spiritual gift of knowledge. I had never thought of that. I thought that I knew things because I had studied them. (And let me say here that sometimes I feel like this gift is more of a curse than blessing, but that is a whole other post.) My patriarchal blessing talks about my pre-mortal life and then says, "Therefore, as soon as you heard the gospel, it rang true to you and you accepted it readily." Well, folks, I was born in the covenant, raised by righteous parents and heard the gospel in infancy. I've never questioned or had doubts about the Gospel of Jesus Christ as taught in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And I love the Book of Mormon!

Elder Nelson's talk was a good reminder that I once again, need to read the Book of Mormon. I neglected reading it last year while studying the Old Testament. I have bad habits that I want to conquer, relationships that I want to improve, and spiritual capacity that needs increasing in these perilous times.

I was taught, and have long known, that The Book of Mormon is the handbook for our times. It teaches us of the Savior and the enabling power of His Atonement. We learn how to fight, both defensively and offensively, against Satan and his minions. We learn how to minister, how to share the gospel, and how to live in families and communities. It is a fantastic book!

Taking part in the General Conference Odyssey is such a blessing to me, reading past talks that speak to today's challenges with encouragement and hope. I'll add my testimony to Elder Nelson's that I know that the Book of Mormon is indeed a true book; meaning it is not fiction, but a record of real history; there are no lies, falsehoods, or deceptions in it. It is truthful, accurate, and trustworthy.