Prepare Their Hearts

After the Lamanites destroyed the people of Ammonihah, they were subsequently driven out of the land by Zoram and the armies of the Nephites. With peace restored, “Alma and Amulek go forth, and also many more who had been chosen for the work, to preach the word throughout all the land.” As they labored in their missionary efforts, “The Lord did pour out his Spirit on all the face of the land to prepare the minds of the children of men, or to prepare their hearts to receive the word which should be taught among them at the time of his coming.” The people “were taught that [the Son of God] would appear unto them after his resurrection” (Alma 16:15-20). What is interesting to me is that this was about 80 years before the Savior would be born, and it was about 115 years before the Savior would appear to the Nephites. So surely none of these people who were being prepared would actually be alive when the Savior would be among them, and yet the Lord still worked to prepare them for that future event. He was, it seems, preparing them so they could prepare their children who would in turn prepare their children to be ready to receive the Savior when He came. And perhaps some of these people who were prepared were among those whom Samuel the Lamanite (and the Savior) spoke about: “At the day that the Father should glorify his name in me that there were many saints who should arise from the dead, and should appear unto many, and should minister unto them” (3 Nephi 23:9). Surely it was a glorious day for those resurrected Nephites who finally got to be there for the coming of the Lord.

                These verses then suggest to me that we should work to prepare ourselves and our own children for that day when the Savior comes again on the earth. Like for these Nephites it may not come in our day, but that doesn’t change the fact that we should prepare our minds and hearts to receive Him. I think verse 17 is the key for what we have to do: “That they might not be hardened against the word, that they might not be unbelieving, and go on to destruction, but that they might receive the word with joy, and as a branch be grafted into the true vine, that they might enter into the rest of the Lord their God.” We prepare ourselves by not hardening our hearts or being unbelieving, but by receiving the word of the Lord “with joy.” When the word of God—from modern and ancient prophets—becomes a joy to us, then we can know that our minds and hearts are being prepared to meet Him again. We also must seek to avoid the destructive actions listed in the next verse: “Now those priests who did go forth among the people did preach against all lyings, and deceivings, and envyings, and strifes, and malice, and revilings, and stealing, robbing, plundering, murdering, committing adultery, and all manner of lasciviousness, crying that these things ought not so to be.” We must seek to rid ourselves of these evil doings including dishonesty, envy, contention, and immorality, and then seek to help our children do the same as we prepare them. I love this description of the people as they did this and were taught by Alma and his brethren: “The people did hear with great joy and gladness.” As we soften our heart and receive the word of the Lord with joy, cleansing ourselves from all sin, we too will have “the victory over the devil” and feel the Lord “pouring out his blessings upon [us]” (Alma 16:20-21). And then, in some future day, we will indeed rejoice at His coming.