The Book of Mormon is simply the greatest masterclass available for navigating this mortal life. In the 17th chapter of 1 Nephi, verse 13, Nephi was taught important principles directly from Jesus Christ. He said, “I will also be your light in the wilderness, and I will prepare the way before you.” Then we are taught by the stories of real people how those principles are accomplished.

God gave Lehi and his family the Liahona with directions and teachings that were frequently updated, and He charged them to exercise faith to access the Liahona’s miracles. To us He has given the Book of Mormon with eternal directions, in addition to living prophets who update us frequently—with the same charge. 

Wilford Woodruff taught us this principle when he said we should be “thrilled with heavenly joy for what God has done for us in our generation, furnishing us, as he has done, with every facility to prepare us, our posterity, and our ancestors, for that eternal world which lies beyond the present life.” 

When Jesus Christ promised Nephi that He would be his light in the wilderness, He was speaking to us as well. He is the light that helps us see what we would not otherwise see.

President Nelson has emphatically told us that in the coming days we will not be able to survive without the guiding light of the Holy Ghost. Today, perhaps more than ever, we need the light that Jesus Christ provides. We need to be able to see what is truth and what is not. We need to be able to navigate the murky waters of this mortal life and return home to our Heavenly Father. As we study the Book of Mormon this year, let us do so with an eye focused on what Jesus Christ is trying to teach us. He lives. He knows the way. Of this I bear my solemn witness. In the name of Jesus Christ.Amen.