For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been motivated to finish reading the Book of Mormon. Since I started studying it, friends would always mention how many times they’ve been through it, and it was a big deal to me the first time I had finished it.
To this day, that has always lingered in my mind every time I read. “I wonder how quickly I can finish it again?” And each subsequent time I would finish it I always felt a feeling of accomplishment, like I was adding another tally to my personal total. But is “finishing” it what really matters?
I don’t believe so.
For the longest time I’ve always focused on finishing the Book of Mormon. But more important than finishing it, is actually reading it – every day, every day, every day.
The Book of Mormon doesn’t read like a normal book. It’s not a book to read through once and then maybe read again another time because you remembered enjoying it before.
Elder Kevin W. Pearson taught, “Search the Book of Mormon and the words of the living prophets every day, every day, every day! It’s the key to spiritual survival and avoiding deception. Without it, we are spiritually lost.” (Stay by the Tree, In Conference, April 2015)
The Book of Mormon is “Another Testament of Jesus Christ.” It is the keystone of our faith, and it contains the fullness of His everlasting. Its pages are saturated with pure testimony of the Savior, which, when read, never fail to bring a special spirit – the Spirit of God. I feel it each and every time I read.
There is so much to gain from studying the Book of Mormon on a daily basis, that it is never meant to be “finished.” Combined with the other scriptures available to us, and the words of the living prophets, it is an essential piece of our spiritual survival kit. It was written and preserved for us, for this time in the history of the world. It was written for the world, and every one in it, to know that there is a living God, who loves all of His children, and who gave His Son, and that His tender mercies are available to all who believe in Him and keep His commandments. It also provides evidence that the Savior’s ministry was not limited to the people of ancient Israel, but to his “other sheep” on the North American continent, and perhaps in other areas around the world as well. Many sacrifices were made to preserve the record that the Book of Mormon contains, both during its inception and its restoration.
Lets not try and compare and compete with each other regarding the number of times we have read through the entirety of the Book of Mormon. There is no profit in doing so. Rather, let’s ask ourselves whether or not we have read it today, and make that our habit. The quality of the time we spend studying its pages is much more important the how many times we have finished the book itself.
The Latter-day Life 