New Journal Format & Thoughts on 1 Nephi 19

I'm trying a new scripture journal format, which includes writing my thoughts as I read and includes a section at the end of WAYS I CAN IMPROVE based on what I read that day. In that way, I hope that I can be able to better myself by truly pondering and implementing ways I can improve based on my insights while reading the scriptures.

Here are some thoughts as I read in 1 Nephi 19:
*Verse 9 says, “And because of their iniquity, the world shall judge Him to be a thing of naught…” Even though this scripture was written about the time period when Christ actually lived on the earth, this scripture, sadly, captures how the world is today. Because of iniquity, people judge Christ and say that He really didn’t live, or that His sacrifice wasn’t as great as the scriptures say it was. Some people don’t even believe in Christ and instead mock and scorn those that do believe. There are those who say that they believe, when in reality their actions speak differently.
*I want to live my life so that the Savior’s suffering was worth it. I don’t want to waste what He did through actions and an unrepentant attitude. I want to live my life so that those who know me want to know Jesus Christ. I know that we can live as examples to the world, even in this world of sin and iniquity. I can be better.
*There is yet time to repent and to change. There is time to come unto our Savior and better ourselves for eternal life.
*Verse 23- Like Nephi, we also need to liken all scriptures unto us. If we don’t, we’re not using the scriptures correctly. These scriptures were given unto us for our profit and learning. They were given unto us to better us and to help us to improve ourselves in this life. We can only improve ourselves IF we are trying to liken them unto ourselves.

WAYS I CAN IMPROVE: Be more diligent at scripture study. I can TRULY apply the scriptures to my life in order to repent and better myself.
*I can remember my Savior and His suffering for me. I can use the power of the atonement in my life, not only to repent, but also as a source of comfort and strength.
*I can live my life according to the covenants I have made with Heavenly Father and I will make with him in the temple.

This Morning's Scattered Bullet Points...

Here are some thoughts as I read in Doctrine & Covenants, Section 5:
*Heavenly Father has provided a wonderful plan for us!
*The most important gift of that plan is that we have the ability to receive eternal life.
*In addition to that supreme gift, He provides us with other gifts along the way. He provides us with peace and comfort. He provides us with earthly and spiritual comforts and knowledge.
*How can people say that God doesn’t love us, or that there isn’t a God, when it is evident in everything around us? How ungrateful can people be to say that there is no God?
*People struggle with finding the purpose of this life, if there be any. We’re blessed with the knowledge that there is a God and He has masterfully created a plan for us. The odds are stacked on our side. We only have to do our best, to overcome our faults and mistakes, in order to return to Him. Sure, life isn’t always easy, but God is there to love and protect us, if we are living worthy of that love and protection.

Thoughts as I read 1 Nephi chapter 6:
*The scriptures are important… Nephi states that his purpose in writing is to persuade men to come unto God. He also says that he “will give a commandment unto [his] seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men” (1 Nephi 6:6). The scriptures are important to us in our day to provide knowledge, strength, and comfort. We need to use them in order to have power in our lives, for knowledge (especially spiritual knowledge) is truly power.