What follows are excerpts from the first pages of Ammon’s missionary journal. Verse 24 notes that Ammon made quite a first impression on Lamoni, the king, that he would want Ammon to marry one of his daughters.
Ammon’s approach to missionary work was simple and effective. The first thing he told the king was, “I will be thy servant”—in other words, he was willing to serve. While serving, he would show forth God’s power in order to win some hearts and to lead them to believe in his words. Armed with the power of God and the Lord’s promise of protection given through Mosiah, Ammon smote off the arms of “not a few” of the sheep rustlers. They could not hit Ammon with their stones and “began to be astonished” at the strength of Ammon’s arm.
The Lord arranged through this episode a brilliant teaching opportunity, beginning with the number-one man in the kingdom and his household. Ammon helped convert a king and, through him, a people.