Come unto me as a little child

3 Nephi 9: 22 Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved.

Brother Griffin's Book of Mormon class has opened my eyes to a new way of reading the scriptures. Never in my reading have I really given thought to how the people being talked about actually felt, what they saw, or how they reacted to these things. After this scripture was read, Brother Griffin posed the question, "where do you think the children were at this time?" I know that if I had been young at this time in history, I would have made every effort possible to stay close to my parents. Unable to see through the thick darkness, I would have been reaching out for a piece of fabric, for a shoulder, a wrist, an index finger, anything that I could hold onto so that I could feel safe. Knowing that I was with my parents would help me to feel protected because I know that they would do anything for me. In reverse, I know that my mom and dad love me so much that they would be reaching out to me. They would have held onto me so tightly the minute the destruction began and they would make every effort to keep me safe throughout it. So, when the Nephites heard these words "as a little child" how did they react? Did they look down at the child they held in their hands, the child frightened and confused, clinging to them for dear life? It makes sense to me. So then, one way to interpret the Savior's words "as a little child" is to realize that in order to inherit the kingdom of God we must cling to the Savior. In other words we must pray fervently and with faith knowing that He will hear our prayers and that it is ONLY through Him that we can be saved or that we can survive our latest trial. We must feast upon the words of Christ (the scriptures) with ferocious hunger. We must be steadfast and immovable in keeping the commandments and in serving our God. Our testimonies must be strong in this day. Satan's power is strong, but with Christ we cannot fail. As I have been preparing for my mission, I have realized the importance of these things. It is not enough to go through the motions of reading my scriptures and saying my prayers, but when I do these things with full purpose of heart, there is no power strong enough to break my testimony.