An angel sent from the courts of glory-the same angel who had struck down the wayward and wandering Alma and the sons of Mosiah about two decades earlier (see Mosiah 27, Alma 36)-had returned to offer consolation and comfort and counsel.
His initial message was one of assurance, the quiet but powerful acknowledgment that Alma had been faithful, that his offering was acceptable before God. A peace of soul comes to the obedient and the faithful that is unknown to the flighty and the inconsistent, an inner awareness that God is pleased with their efforts.
Such feelings may come in spite of results, in spite of “success” or lack of it, at least as measured by worldly standards. One who labors with lidelity and devotion, seeking diligently to lead others to baptism, is successful in the Lord’s eyes.