At a surface level, Alma 2 is a chapter about a sizeable military conflict, effectively a civil war where Amlici and his followers, who want Amlici as king, anoint Amlici as the king and then go to war against the Nephites, who just recently had done away with the kingship and had a chief judge instead.
Both the Nephites and Amlicites have a organizational structure (captains and chief captains), and a variety of weapons.
At their first engagement, the Amlicites fought "with great strength", resulting in many Nephite casualties.
But the Lord strengthened the Nephites and they began to gain the upper hand, making the Amlicites flee.
That night, Nephite spies found that the Amlicites were teaming up with the Lamanites, greatly increasing the risks and costs of a military conflict.
The words of the Nephite spies were, "They are upon our brethren in that land; and they are fleeing....towards our city; and except we make haste they obtain possession of our city, and our fathers, and our wives, and our children be slain."
The next day, the Nephites were strengthened by the Lord after praying mightily to be delivered from the hands of their enemies.
Alma fought Amlici, the leader of the Amlicites and killed him.
Alma chased down the king of the Lamanites, who fled, though Alma and his guards fought with the king's guard.
Let me stop here and go back and revisit some aspects of this tale and suggest applications that may apply to us today.
1. Note that both the Nephites and the Amlicites had an organizational structure. Both had the same sorts of weapons. And both were fighting for causes they thought were just. What was the main difference that we read in this account? It was that God strengthened the Nephites. Consider yourself: how much different would my marriage be, would my family life be, would my profession or church service be, if God never strengthened me? How would I struggle? What would I lack? In other words, I would like all of us to consider how God strengthens us today in each of those venues, and I'd encourage you ask yourself if there is something you can do today which will unlock greater spiritual power, a greater dose of God's help for you? Maybe there's a family member to forgive. Member there's a sin to be repented of. Maybe there's a sacrifice that needs to be made, or some time that we need to spend with our wives, or our kids, or with the Lord in prayer. Whatever it is, I'd encourage you to think about God's strengthening, how that has blessed you, how it blesses you today, and how it can bless you in the future.
2. This story records that the Nephites needed to pray mightily, powerfully in order to receive this strength from the Lord. Again, it wasn't enough that they were organized, or that they thought they were in the right, or that they had done their homework. They needed to pour out their hearts to God, to pray mightily. In the scriptures, wonderful miracles and visions and blessings are often preceded by someone pouring out their heart to God. When was the last time that you poured out your heart to God? When was the last time that one of your prayers could be considered mighty or powerful? When was the last time that, as the Primary song says, you felt heaven close around you as you prayed? If it has been a long time, consider this a suggestion, even an invitation, to make the time and the effort necessary to pray mightily, to pray powerfully to God. We all have the energy and the capacity to serve God with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength, and one way we show this is through fervent prayer.
3. Once Alma and the Nephites were strengthened, their troubles did not immediately stop. God did not magically transport the Lamanites and Amlicites back to their lands, nor did he make the weapons disappear. A war still had to be fought. Lives still had to be lost. A titanic struggle still ensued. Sometimes in the middle of a struggle we may not realize that God has strengthened us, but that does not mean that trials and difficulties go away. God's grace strengthens us to face them. Consider Nephi's account of their wanderings in the wilderness, when he recounts the great blessings that God has given them, "[T]hat while we did live upon raw ceat in the wilderness, our women did give plenty of suck for their children, and were strong, yea, even like unto the men; and they began to bear their journeyings without murmurings." The blessings that Nephi saw as miraculous was not that they had plenty of delicious food to eat. It was that their wives could provide plenty of milk for nursing infants. It was not that the women had no burdens, it was that they were strong. It wasn't even that they weren't complaining, it was that they began to bear their journeyings without murmurings. In other words, they murmured less. A cynic or skeptic could look at any one of these and discount that God had anything to do with it. Sometimes we can be a little skeptical or maybe even unbelieving about God working in our life. If you can't see God in your life, I'd invite you to step back and try to see things as Nephi did. Prayerfully and honestly look at how God is strengthening you or someone close to you. If we pray to ask God to show us His hand in our life, it is my conviction that God answers those prayers by opening eyes to see the blessings He gives us. Seeing a blessing like that is a great reason to be grateful and to rejoice.
4. Alma's struggle has effectively two parts: in one, he kills Amlici. In the other, he chases away the Lamanite king. The Lamanite king may return, and in fact did with a large army shortly after the Nephite victory. We can see that the problems we face are a little like Nephi's problems: some of them may go away, effectively be destroyed. When we have a difficulty or a challenge, this is how we want it to end. And some do end this way. Others, however, may only be able to be pushed away or fought away for a time, but they come again. So don't be discouraged if you find yourself struggling with something again and again. Sometimes the struggle that we live in requires fighting the same sorts of battles repeatedly, as the Nephites did. This is not a clear and obvious sign of failure. People doing everything that they can do may still struggle with something over and over again, perhaps throughout their entire life.
As we struggle, may we see that God is on our right hand and on our left, and that He has powers and resources and abilities that can strengthen and bless us as we fight our own battles, whether against physical health, mental illness, family challenges, employment difficulties, personal weaknesses, or many other obstacles or problems that get in the way, that act effectively as enemies to our progress, to our happiness, to our potential. God's grace is sufficient, meaning that He has enough. He doesn't run out!
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