Tag Archive for: read

The Enos Challenge

๐–๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐๐จ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ?
โ€œStudying โ€“ the act of texting, eating and watching Netflix with an open textbook nearbyโ€ โ€“ thatโ€™s one definition at least!
Growing older, Iโ€™ve discovered that I love to study, i.e., โ€œdevoting time and attention to gain knowledgeโ€ โ€“ perhaps that is a more traditional definition!
In Doctrine & Covenants 88:118, the Lords describes how to learn the gospel โ€œโ€ฆyea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith.
Reading and studying are both part of the learning process.
So โ€“ is there a difference between the two?
Another definition I found suggests that – Studying means to concentrate and devote time in completing or researching any task; while reading means to understand and grasp the meaning of any content without devoting much time to it.
In simple terms, โ€œyouโ€™re only going to get out of this what you put into it.โ€ โ€“ Boyd K. Packer.
Whilst listening to a podcast in our pre-mission training, we were encouraged to take the Enos challenge.
The invitation was to study the one chapter of Enos in the Book of Mormon for 30 days.
My immediate thought was โ€œHow can I study Enos for 30 days, there are only 27 verses!โ€
However, I accepted the challenge and learned many wonderful lessons, as I slowed down and studied those verses, one by one.
The book of Enos is like a pure journal entry and is a very personal chapter of scripture.
There was indeed much to learn.

The Process of Studying…

The process of studying the scriptures has three important parts:
1 – Understanding the background and setting of the scriptures.
2 – Identifying the principles and doctrines being taught.
3 – Applying those truths to our own lives.
I learned that studying is better when you take your time, by looking out for key words, youโ€™ll discover that truths about Jesus Christ are everywhere.
Recently I invited all of the missionaries to complete the Enos challenge.
I love this piece of street art graffiti in Friesland.
It was a timely serendipitous find by Tess Flake upon her completion of the challenge!
Have you ever taken time to study the scriptures?
Enos may be a good place to start!

Why study?

“Studying – the act of texting, eating and watching Netflix with an open textbook nearby” – that’s one definition at least!

Why study? Do I really need to?

An oft heard question targeted at a parent, from a challenging teenager perhaps?

Growing older, I’ve discovered that I love to study, i.e. “devoting time and attention to gain knowledge” – perhaps that is a more traditional definition!ย  In fact, my penchant for both good books, research and news commentary have developed over the years into something akin to an addiction!ย  Duolingo, online resources, daily reading and personal tuition have certainly all been extremely important for me right now, as I refresh my Dutch language skills.

So what are the fruits of study? What does it give us in our life – if anything? Why bother?

In my mind, there are many rewards. For example, I’d expect that that there will be an upside in all of following areas of our life, including….

Education, Knowledge, Understanding, Awareness, Influence, Perspective, Appreciation, Decision Making, Opportunities, Achievements and many, many more!

One key aspect of study, is discovery. New insights, new information, new inspiration, new strokes of ideas! Frequently referred to as “aha” moments. They can be magical, exciting and motivational.

My top tip – ๐‘๐’๐•๐ – ๐‘๐ž๐š๐, ๐’๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ, ๐•๐ข๐ฌ๐ฎ๐š๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ๐ž, ๐๐จ๐ง๐๐ž๐ซ

Why not study? And yes – you really need to! Go on, pick up a new book today!