Come follow me for seniors: Recent Episodes
Al Jensen
Weekly podcast. by Al Jensen on the "Come Follow Me" lesson from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Reading the Old Testament often means reading prophecies about destruction. The Lord frequently called prophets to warn the wicked that His judgments were upon them. The ministries of Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah are good examples. In dreadful detail, these prophets foretold the downfall of cities that, at the time, seemed strong and powerful—Nineveh, Babylon, and even Jerusalem. But that was thousands of years ago. Why is it valuable to read these prophecies today?
Even though those prideful, wicked cities were destroyed, pride and wickedness persist. In today’s world, we can sometimes feel surrounded by the evils that were condemned by the ancient prophets. We may even detect traces of them in our own hearts. These Old Testament prophecies reveal how the Lord feels about pride and wickedness, and they teach that we can turn away from these evils. Perhaps that’s one reason we still read these ancient prophecies today. Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, and the others weren’t just prophets of doom—they were prophets of deliverance. The descriptions of destruction are tempered by invitations to come unto Christ and receive His mercy: “Seek ye the Lord … ; seek righteousness, seek meekness” (Zephaniah 2:3). This was the Lord’s way anciently, and it is His way today. “His ways are everlasting” (Habakkuk 3:6).
For overviews of these books, see “Nahum,” “Habakkuk,” and “Zephaniah” in the Bible Dictionary.
You can study the scriptures for a lifetime and still find new insights. Don’t feel that you have to comprehend everything right now. Pray for help to recognize the messages you need today.
God chose Abraham’s seed to be His covenant people so that they would “be a blessing” to all people (see Genesis 12:2–3). But instead, by the time of Amos’s ministry, many of the covenant people were oppressing the poor and ignoring the prophets, making their acts of worship empty and meaningless (see Amos 2:6–16). True, the nations surrounding them were also guilty of great sins (see Amos 1; 2:1–5), but that has never been an excuse for God’s people (see Amos 3:2). So God sent a herdsman from Judah named Amos to preach repentance to the Kingdom of Israel. Later, God also declared through the prophet Obadiah that although the Kingdom of Judah had been destroyed, the Lord would gather and bless His people again. The covenant people had strayed from the Lord, both prophets testified, but they would not be cast off forever. When God reveals His secrets to His servants the prophets (see Amos 3:7), we can take it as a sign that He still wants to help us live up to the covenants we made with Him.
Most likely no one will ever threaten to throw you into a fiery furnace or a den of lions because of your faith in Jesus Christ. But none of us get through this life without a trial of faith. We can all benefit from the example of people like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who were taken captive as young men by the mighty Babylonian Empire (see 2 Kings 24:10–16). These young people were surrounded by an unfamiliar culture with different values, and they faced great temptations to abandon their beliefs and righteous traditions. Yet they remained true to their covenants. Like Joseph in Egypt and Esther in Persia, Daniel and his friends in Babylon kept their faith in God, and God worked miracles that still inspire believers to this day.
How did they find the strength to remain so faithful? They did those small and simple things that God has asked all of us to do—praying, fasting, choosing good friends, trusting in God, and being a light to others. As we are strengthened by doing these same small and simple things, we can face the lions and fiery furnaces in our own lives with faith.
For an overview of the book of Daniel, see “Daniel, book of” in the Bible Dictionary.
How will you fill yourself with God’s word this week?
The lesson talks about repentance, sharing gods word, and the gathering of the saints with a message from President Nelson.
This lesson talks about the lord responding to the children of Israel after their affliction and destruction. It features how the scriptures can help us today become closer to the Lord.
Jeremiah is fearless toward preaching the word. He talks about the living waters and that we will need to partake of them if we want to return to his presence.
This episode talks about the second coming and Christ declaring himself as the son of God.
Some of the most beautiful writing of Isaiah are in this lesson. The Lord tells us how much he loves us and will redeem us. The lesson also focuses on the world crisis today and how the lord does not want us to fear.
This lesson focuses on the saving power of the Lord and how we should not fear when we have him on our side.
This book chronicles the life of Ephraim K Hanks. Chapter 5 discuses his trip to Chicago and then his eventual trip to Nauvoo.
This episode talks about different kind of scams generally offered to seniors. It also tells things to do to avoid these scams.
This is chapter number 2 talking about the beginning of the trail. A discussion on how Eph goes out on his own and starts to make something of his life.
This podcast focuses on the first half of the book of psalms. There are three key messages that we will discuss. 1. How the book of psalms talks about Christ. 2. How to we need to be pure in heart. 3. What can we do today to become closer to christ throught the book of Psalms.