Alma 63

(May 6, 2015)

                We all want to be remembered (and, hopefully, remembered fondly).  We all want to be the hero of our own story.  Some of us are, like Peter, true heroes.  Some of us are, like Judas, true villains.  But each of us like to believe that we are heroes and the day will come when we will be recognized as important and special in some way.

                But, of course, that is not a promise that has been given to any of us.  Moronihah is a prime example.  We know that he was a powerful general, and fought (and presumably suffered) for his people.  He won wars, and he lost some important battles as well.  Yet, for whatever reason, he is a footnote in history.

                Likewise, each of us is likely to only be a footnote (at best!) in history.  We will be forgotten, time will move on without us, and those who we love and who love us will move forward without us. We will have descendents we will never meet in mortality.

                With that in mind, it is important to remember that our influence must not be used for us, but for those who come after us.  Our great, great, great grandchildren will likely never know us.  But the legacy of sacrifice and attempts to live the Gospel that we pass to our children, which they pass to theirs, and on down the line will have the capacity to bless their lives.  They likely will never know in mortality the source of that legacy, but it is something that we can do for them.

                If we, by so doing, become Moronihah (barely remembered) or even if we are forgotten altogether, it will not make a difference in the end.