Always Listen to Your Mother
I woke up early Saturday morning in almost a cold sweat after having a horrible dream and feeling like I had been under a lot of pressure and stress for a long time. I began to wonder if I was doing the right thing. I began to wonder if it was right for me to be two thirds of a country away from all of my family and most of my friends. I began to wonder if going back to school full-time after all of these years was right and if I was right to quit my job like I did and move to Utah and eventually to Idaho. I began to feel like a strange man living in a strange land amongst a strange people.
Then, all of a sudden the words, "Remember Mom, Remember Mom," came into my head and I remembered how excited, almost uncharacteristically so, she was about me going back to school and getting my degree. And about how much she was encouraging me to go forward with it. I couldn't remember any other point in my life where she had given me such encouragement and was as excited about what I was doing. That made me feel a little better.
I then began to remember about a group of young men that I had read about in
The Book of Mormon--Another Testament of Jesus Christ, about a group of young men who listened to their mothers and were protected in the face of grave danger. They were sons of the people of
Anti-Nephi-Lehi. Their parents had been a wicked and murderous people. They were converted by a
Nephite prophet called
Ammon, were convinced of their wicked ways, covenanted with God to never shed blood of another human again. They had buried their swords and choose to lay down their lives rather than risk killing again and displeasing God. Because of this they were taken in and protected from their enemies by the
Nephites who were in the middle of a vicious battle.
Because of the protection that the Nephites were providing them, these people desired to help them and were about to take up their swords again. Just before they took up their weapons they were stopped by their leader who did not want them to risk breaking their covenant and displeasing God. Because of this, 10,000 of their sons, who had not covenanted against going to war, decided to help out and go to war to defend their people. These were some of the strongest, most faithful soldiers to ever walk the earth. They were in many fierce and bloody battles and none of them were killed. They showed their faith by fighting alongside with their brethren even though they had never seen war before. They believed that because of the faith and prayers of their mothers that they would be protected and they were. They got their faith from their mothers.
"Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them. And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it." (
Alma 56: 47,48)
"Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness; yea, and even according to their faith it was done unto them; and I did remember the words which they said unto me that their mothers had taught them." (
Alma 57: 21)
I am grateful for the influence and strength that my mother has had in my life. I started to write this in January when I was in between homes and school. I was temporarily living in South Jordan, Utah waiting to come up to
Rexburg, Idaho to go to school. I am grateful for my mother's support during that time and for her continued support while I have been here in school. Knowing that she supports me in my decision really helps. I wish her and Don (my step-father) the best in San Antonio.
