Day 341

  • Principle: Tender mercies abound in your life.

  • Book of Mormon Reading: Ether 6:12 - 7:6

  • Verse 12 talks of tender mercies.  Turn to the True to the Faith read the entry on “Mercy”  

    • What do you learn about mercy?

    • How is it changed by adding the word tender?

    • What about adding both words multitude and tender?

  • David A. Bednar taught

    • “I testify that the tender mercies of the Lord are real and that they do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence. Often the Lord’s timing of His tender mercies helps us to both discern and acknowledge them.

      “… The Lord’s tender mercies are the very personal and individualized blessings, strength, protection, assurances, guidance, loving-kindness, consolation, support, and spiritual gifts which we receive from and because of and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Truly the Lord suits ‘his mercies according to the conditions of the children of men’ (D&C 46:15).

      “… One of the ways whereby the Savior comes to each of us is through His abundant and tender mercies. For instance, as you and I face challenges and tests in our lives, the gift of faith and an appropriate sense of personal confidence that reaches beyond our own capacity are two examples of the tender mercies of the Lord. Repentance and forgiveness of sins and peace of conscience are examples of the tender mercies of the Lord. And the persistence and the fortitude that enable us to press forward with cheerfulness through physical limitations and spiritual difficulties are examples of the tender mercies of the Lord” (in Conference Report, Apr. 2005, 105; or Ensign, May 2005, 99–100).

  • Cross reference these verses with Moroni 10:3.  Gene R. Cook taught:

    • “The last five words of [Moroni 10:3] offer an important admonition—‘ponder it in your hearts.’ What is the antecedent of ‘it’—the thing that we are to ponder? It is ‘how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things.’ We are to remember how loving, how provident, how good, how forgiving our Heavenly Father has been toward us.

      “What usually happens when we begin to ponder how merciful the Lord has been to mankind? To us personally? What happens when we count our blessings, or perhaps our sins for which we must ask his forgiveness, and recognize his hand in our individual lives? Is it not true that our hearts turn to the Lord in love and gratitude? Do our faith and humility increase? Yes, and that, in my judgment, is the impact of verse 3—following the counsel therein helps us to become more humble, more willing and ready to receive new information and knowledge with an open mind” (“Moroni’s Promise,” Ensign, Apr. 1994, 12).

      • What is the blessing associated with pondering on the Lord’s mercies?

  • Additional Study: