Receive Them With Thankful Hearts

To my son,

                One of the themes that we see in the writings of Nephi in the Book of Mormon is the importance of writing and records. He was always very conscious of what he was writing and how it would be preserved for the future. He said of the small plates (what we have today as 1^st & 2^nd Nephi): “I desire the room that I may write of the things of God. For the fulness of mine intent is that I may persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved. Wherefore, the things which are pleasing unto the world I do not write, but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world. Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men” (1 Nephi 6:3-6). He wanted to make sure that what was written on the plates were of worth unto his posterity and us in our day. He also explained further his motivation in writing: “I have received a commandment of the Lord that I should make these plates, for the special purpose that there should be an account engraven of the ministry of my people…. Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not” (1 Nephi 9:3, 5). We can trust that what was written and became part of the Book of Mormon is of great worth to us and important for our learning. We know that it was a difficult task to engraven the words upon plates—his brother Jacob said, “I cannot write but a little of my words, because of the difficulty of engraving our words upon plates”—and we are so blessed that they took the time to record their testimonies and experiences with the Lord for us.

Jacob also added this comment to his writing: “We know that the things which we write upon plates must remain” (Jacob 4:1). Today in addition to encouraging you to study these words in the Book of Mormon, I hope that you will be inspired to keep your own record of your life in your own journal. What you write in your journal will “remain” for a reference for your future self and your posterity as long as you keep it and preserve it. Recently my sister sent me a message asking about someone she ran into. He apparently recognized her and told her that he had been to our house for dinner around Christmas time many years before. It sounded familiar but I couldn’t remember exactly. So, I looked it up in my journal and found that, sure enough, he and his sister Sandra had come to our home for Christmas in 2007. They were from Madagascar and didn’t have other family around. I was grateful that I had kept a record of it that I could refer to and remember. I also recorded something else that I had forgotten which we did that Christmas day with them so many years ago: “After the gifts we did something we hadn’t ever done before and went downtown to serve food to the homeless. We went to a viaduct where they were serving food and helped out. Sandra and I ended up delivering some food to an older couple and I shoveled their driveway and walks and Sandra talked with them for a long time…. I felt a little like I was on my mission again.  It was refreshing to do something like that for Christmas.” If I had not written that down then it likely would have been completely forgotten. Nephi and other Nephite prophets left us a powerful example of writing down important experiences and truths for future generations. I hope that you will take time occasionally—Sunday is a great day—to write down what you are doing and thinking about and hoping for and looking forward to. Write about your testimony of the gospel and of your interests and favorite things. As you do so, you will be creating a permanent record not just for yourself but for your future family. Then perhaps what Jacob hoped for will be true for your children and grandchildren: “hoping that… our children will receive them with thankful hearts, and look upon them that they may learn with joy and not with sorrow, neither with contempt, concerning their first parents” (Jacob 4:3). 

Love,

Dad