Alma experienced a powerful conversion, and he was changed; he basically did an about-face. How did that affect him personally? Is not one of the fruits of repentance the desire to want to share with other people what you have experienced? Have you had that feeling? In the vision of the tree of life, Lehi came to the tree, partook of that fruit, and then had an overwhelming desire to share it with his family.
If we retain a bright remembrance of our conversion, or conversions—we may have many in our lifetimes—we can also retain the desire to share the truths of the gospel. In these chapters there are many lessons that will help us as we move forward. Alma’s case is a wonderful example of a lifetime of growth.
It is one thing to talk about the principle of repentance and the effects of the Atonement, but Alma experienced those on a very powerful level. He became an expert in those things, and was able to teach very effectively because it was personal and real, and he knew how to communicate that. He, like Paul, had an unusual experience. Not everyone has that kind of a wake-up call. But because of it, Alma also could act as a much stronger teacher and an example of repentance and conversion, followed by enduring faithfulness.
We love, remember, and talk about the conversion of Alma the Younger, probably because it is so much of an archetype. It is an ideal representation of the full repentance process in its most powerful form. We all have parts of that going on in our own lives and in our own ongoing conversions. When Paul was teaching, he had the same kind of fire and could speak from the same type of first-hand experience. No matter how dramatic one’s initial spiritual transformation is, conversion really is a lifetime process. It was that way for both Alma and Paul, and it is that way for us. We must all endure to the end.