Alma had just finished telling the people what it meant to be a member of Christ’s church – to mourn with those who mourn, to take Christ’s name upon them, to keep the commandments, to be baptized…

And they clapped their hands because this was the desire of their hearts.

Although these people that Alma converted were pretty amazing, they weren’t perfect.

I can guarantee they didn’t always fulfill every single part of their baptismal covenants.

But, it was the DESIRE of their HEARTS to keep them perfectly.

They had (near) perfect DESIRE.

Ever fallen out of the habit of praying, repented, and then fallen out of the habit again?

I have.

It’s so tempting to feel frustrated, like we are failing.

But sweet Elder Holland’s words come to my mind: we get credit just for TRYING.

Do we DESIRE to pray every day?

Do we keep trying even when we forget or mess up?

Then we are doing everything exactly RIGHT.

And if we don’t have righteous desires yet, that’s what we can work on!

Turning our hearts to Him so that our desires become more and more Christlike each day.

And once our desires are there, we just have to try.

And keep trying.

That’s all He asks.

Happy Studying!

-Cali Black

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