Seeds of Faith

In the Book of Mormon, a prophet named Alma teaches about faith using the symbolism of a seed. When we receive the word of God, we should plant it in our hearts and nourish it (learn it, understand it, and act on it). When we do this, when we "nourish the tree ... it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life.
"And because of your diligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, ... by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof, which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst."

As I was discussing this the other day, I thought about different seeds  I have planted (literally, in actual dirt). Growing up, we had a garden and I learned that it was very easy to grow tomatoes and pumpkins. You just need to give them dirt, keep them warm and watered, and then harvest what grows.
At one point I decided I wanted to grow an apple tree from seed. Now that is a much more complicated process. From what I remember, you need to first get the seeds from a couple of different apples, put them in a moist paper towel, and keep them in the fridge until they start to sprout. Then you put them in a planter and need to give them a certain amount of water and sunlight. At that point my seeds died so I never learned what happens next, but I think you see my point.

Certain principles and truths are easier to accept and have faith in than others. For me, it was easy to accept the Book of Mormon as the word of God. When I read it I felt the Spirit, it makes me want to be a better person. So it must be of God.
Other things--like if Joseph Smith was  prophet, why bad things happen to good people, etc-- were more difficult for me to learn and I needed to put time, thought, study, and prayer into discovering whether or not they were true.

I know that as we seek to grow our faith in the word of God, we will be able to begin to taste the blessings He promises us. We will be "filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst." We will be able to "hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men..." (Ether 12:4). Sometimes it will be a quick witness and sometimes it will take more effort, but it will always be worth the price.

Is Salvation Free?

This was an interesting question in my class. It took some thought, but I think I understand it better now. I thought I'd share for any who were curious or confused.

What does Lehi mean when he says that “salvation is free” (2 Nephi 2:4)?

When Lehi says "free," I don't think he means it comes without a price. I think he means that "unto every one of us is given grace" (Eph 4:7). A lot of modern Christian churches teach that grace comes without a price, that it only takes an acceptance of Christ and then we're good. But in Ether 12, we learn at least one thing is necessary for us to receive this grace: "and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me;..."

In Alma 5, it says "Come unto me and ye shall partake of the fruit of the tree of life; yea, ye shall eat and drink of the bread and the waters of life freely;" Yet Alma also asks "now I ask of you on what conditions are they saved?" So we can drink of it freely as we are meeting the conditions of repentance. Some things he mentions are belief in the prophets, faith in Christ's atonement, works of righteousness, being "stripped of pride," etc.

Now, I don't believe that we have to be perfect to partake of Christ's atonement, but we do need to be making an effort. His grace isn't an opportunity for a free ride into the Celestial Kingdom, but it is an enabling power that can help us as we try to get there.