Gandalf stood before the door of Orthanc and beat on it with his staff. It rang with a hollow sound. ‘Saruman, Saruman!’ he cried in a loud commanding voice. ‘Saruman come forth!’… The window closed. They waited. Suddenly another voice spoke, low and melodious, its very sound an enchantment. ThoseContinue Reading

This experience goes well with the account in the Book of Mormon where Laman and Lemuel tell Nephi that he is the “bad guy” (1 Nephi 17:20-21; 18:10) – or when the priests of Noah tell Noah that Abinadi is “judging them” (Mosiah 12:9-12; 17:11-12)… so many places where thisContinue Reading

The narrative of David’s downfall in 2 Samuel 11 is given with such detail and in such a matter of fact manner that it is impossible to miss the point.  David made a series of decisions that brought him and those around him misery.  There were several switchpoints in thisContinue Reading

The showdown between David and Goliath has many relevant parallels to the youth of the Church today.  In many ways Goliath represents the temptations and trials of the world.  He also represents the demands of the world that we must meet.  The author of the text goes on to illustrateContinue Reading

From time to time students express their frustration with those that ridicule them for their faith and for resisting temptation.  Others tell them that they need to “get real” and learn to “live in the real world”.  They are told that since everyone is committing sin, they might as wellContinue Reading