Do you love the scriptures?

How do we feel about the scriptures? Do you love the scriptures? Do you enjoy the words of eternal life in this world? Do you curl up with scriptures yearning to read them? Do we have the same love for the scriptures that was expressed by Nephi Lets turn to: (2 Ne. 4:15–16.) when he said: “For my soul delighteth in the scriptures and my heart pondereth them. … “Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard.”

It is not enough to read the scriptures. Random reading results in reduced retention. We must search for specifics. We must seek for truth and increased understanding of its application in our lives.

1. Time for scripture study requires a schedule that will be honored. Otherwise, blessings that matter most will be at the mercy of things that matter least.
Schedule a time to search the scriptures daily. Scripture study is such an essential part of our spiritual development that we must take time and make it a priority in our daily schedule. Our spirits should never be deprived of the much-needed spiritual nourishment which comes from scripture study. Without this spiritual food our spirits become starved and weakened to temptation.

2. We should begin and end each study session with prayer. We must invite the Spirit to teach us. Nephi taught that: “the mysteries of God shall be unfolded … by the power of the Holy Ghost.” (1 Ne. 10:19

3. To ponder is to meditate, to think, to feast, and to treasure. It is more than a mental method, it is a spiritual striving to obtain and to understand truth. We should follow the process taught by the Savior to the Nephites as he taught them sacred principles. He then instructed them to “Go ye unto your homes, and ponder upon the things which I have said, and ask of the Father, in my name, that ye may understand, and prepare your minds for the morrow.” (3 Ne. 17:3.)

4. We begin with a determination to as Nephi counseled to (1 Ne. 19:23.)  “liken all scriptures unto us … for our profit and learning.”  If we “press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, … [we] shall have eternal life.”

5. Feast means more than to taste. To feast means to savor. We savor the scriptures by studying them in a spirit of delightful discovery and faithful obedience. When we feast upon the words of Christ, they are embedded “in fleshy tables of the heart.”  They become an integral part of our nature.
Once we understand why we need guidance and where we obtain it, we then ask, how can we achieve it? How can we truly live, not “by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God”?

Today is the day appointed for us to prepare to meet God! How are we preparing sisters? Are we learning to love his holy words, as recorded in the scriptures?