16 But Aaron said unto him: If thou desirest this thing, if thou wilt bow down before God, yea, if thou wilt repent of all thy sins, and will bow down before God, and call on his name in faith, believing that ye shall receive, then shalt thou receive the hope which thou desirest.
Ammon gives the king the good news. That it’s not necessary to give up every possession— even though we should be willing if asked. All he has to do is:
1. Bow down before God.
What does that mean? It means to humble oneself before God. What does that mean? To acknowledge and accept our nothingness, and our complete and utter dependence upon him for everything, even every breath we take, and that we can live and move and have our being and be free to choose because of the life he grants us, even from one moment to another. It means recognizing our relationship to him. He is the king of heaven and earth. He is the Creator of the universe and all things therein, our Creator, and the Father of our spirits.
And we, we are the created. Big whoop! We are the painting. The sculpture. But he is the Artist! We are nothing without him. Indebted to him forever, not only for our lives, but our very existence.
2. Repent of all our sins.
What does that mean? Admit our mistakes, both intentional and unintentional. Confess them to ourselves and then to God. Then try our best to do the right thing.
3. Call on his name in faith.
Otherwise known as prayer. What is calling upon his name? What is calling upon someone by name? Well, if I want to speak with my friend, and his name is John, then I would call out the name of John to get his attention. “John!” Then, I would converse with him, as a man speaks with another, or I would continue to call upon him until he answered, if i really wanted him to hear me, and I him.
That is prayer- except the name we call upon is God, or Father, through our Mediator, his Son Jesus Christ.
Joseph Smith once said one of the most profound things I’ve ever heard about prayer. He said, paraphrasing, that when we pray to God, that we should talk to him as we would talk to our neighbor when borrowing something from them. Speak to God naturally, from your heart, not with any pretense or flowery words. That is prayer in its purest form.
But how can we have faith in someone who we don’t know exists? I suppose you just have to want to know. And then the faith will come. What’s the alternative? Having faith in ourselves? With our limited understanding? Good luck with that.... I’ve tried relying on myself, and the wisdom of men. It is nothing compared to Him who knows all, and loves completely.
4. Then we will be happy, and have joy.
Is it that simple? Yes. Once we know the truth, and confess our sins and ask forgiveness and pardon, and are willing to forsake them (like this king), we will be filled with joy. Joy unspeakable. Joy beyond our comprehension. Joy unsurpassed. Joy beyond what we could ever imagine, because even our imagination can not fathom something we have never felt before.
And this even before baptism? Yes. Even before baptism. King Lamoni and his son and Alma the younger and even myself have experienced this. Baptism prepares us to always have his Spirit to be with us, and not just in those moments of grace. So yes, you can be converted right now. Right this very moment! If you want to feel that joy, you just have to do those three simple things....
16 But Aaron said unto him: If thou desirest this thing, if thou wilt bow down before God, yea, if thou wilt repent of all thy sins, and will bow down before God, and call on his name in faith, believing that ye shall receive, then shalt thou receive the hope which thou desirest.
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