Category Archives: Answers to prayer

Spiritual experiences as a foundation for faith

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josephplatesI have been intrigued by Blake Ostler’s 2007 FAIR conference presentation entitled, “Spiritual Experiences as the Basis for Belief and Commitment.”  I have read it several times and have decided that Blake is on to something that I would like to develop further.  As you can see I have modified his title a little bit for use in my essay.  I highly recommend you read his essay first.

I’m going to focus on two points he made as he was answering questions towards the end of the presentation.  The first is this: “Memory, and what we do, is changed every time we think about it and remember it.”  The second is this: “All logic is ex post facto to prove what we already feel is true.”  Keep those points in mind as I advance some ideas on my experience with revelation.

Youthful revelatory experiences

Like Blake, I had some remarkable revelatory experiences when I was young that impressed me at the time but have impressed me even more as I have pondered and remembered them over the years.  I have written about them previously, but will list them here to provide some background.  Don’t think that these sacred events were easily obtained or casually absorbed.  They weren’t.

I was taught and believe that we cannot live on borrowed light.  Throughout my Seminary and Institute experience, I must have heard dozens of lessons on how vitally important it is to obtain our own witness of the spirit in order to remain committed to the church and the gospel in later years.  My teachers taught me and the spirit confirmed that I could receive personal revelation.

Foundational spiritual events

The first revelatory experience to which I’ll refer was obtained while I was a student at BYU Idaho.  I was seventeen years old and very immature but very impressed with a testimony I had heard that week from an Apostle of the Lord.  That weekend in my room I prayed fervently for many hours to know for myself that what he had said was true and important for me in my life.

The next impressive spiritual event in the development of my testimony was the next year when I was eighteen years old and preparing myself to serve a mission.  I have also shared this one in a previous essay.  The experience was equally as impressive as the first one though it was perhaps deeper in meaning and implication.  These are part of my early foundational spiritual memories.

Deep impact on my faith

These were not my only youthful revelatory experiences.  I have recorded several others in my journals that came almost unbidden during the years before my mission.  Although I received them as a result of prayer, the effort was not as intense.  In other words, I did not pray for many hours or fast for days to obtain the other experiences.  Nevertheless, they were just as powerful.

Because of these events, I was able to go through the difficult and rigorous experience of serving as a missionary without looking back and wondering why I decided to sacrifice like that for two years.  I had these sacred memories burning in my heart and being added unto with additional everyday assurances from the Lord that I was engaged in his work and that he was appreciative.

Working with imperfect people

Life marches on.  An education is obtained, a marriage is solemnized in the temple, a family is raised and increasing responsibilities in a career and in the church are rewarding and fulfilling.  As sometimes happens, I begin to learn things about my faith, and especially about the people in it that are at first disturbing and then disappointing.  I experience some logical inconsistencies.

Cognitive dissonance can be a painful experience when it includes people from our world who are in authoritative positions.  For example, a beloved bishop from my youth became inactive after he was released.  How could this happen?  He represented the Lord to me in interviews that I held sacred.  He helped me resolve several youthful problems and encouraged me to be faithful.

Imperfections even at high levels

Another bishop from my youth is disciplined after fiscal improprieties in his business dealings are revealed.  I learn of divorces of people whom I admired, some of whom were influential in my youth.  I then begin to learn of difficulties in higher levels of the church – stake presidents who lose their testimonies and announce to their congregations that they are leaving the faith.

A promising general authority is excommunicated for breaking the law of chastity.  I discover that an apostle was excommunicated for this very same reason less than forty years earlier.  How is this possible – a modern apostle excommunicated?  I can understand it happening in the early days of the church but not in our day and age.  These are men of God.  Tell me this wasn’t so!

Sacred things exposed and mocked

I discovered that a former ordinance worker in the temple had recorded the temple ceremony and then published it.  How could he do that?  I hold the temple sacred and have enjoyed so many wonderful experiences there over the years.  What could cause him to lose his faith and reveal something that means so much to me?  Did he never have any spiritual experiences of his own?

From the earliest days of the church there have been those who have not been impressed with the sacred nature of the temple and have exposed things that they have covenanted to keep sacred.  In our day there are those who claim to have received the second anointing and then describe it on the message boards of those who hate the church.  Something’s not right with this picture.

Not all members receive revelation

I used to think that everybody in the church had spiritual experiences similar to those I enjoyed in my youth.  Over the years, I have come to realize that this is not the case.  Can that be true even for those who have served as bishops, stake presidents or even general authorities?  In my opinion, yes – personal experience has shown this to be so.  Not all members receive revelation.

That has been an amazing thing for me to contemplate.  Was I just extremely lucky or blessed to believe that I could receive revelation when I was so young?  Several visitors to my blog over the years have tried to convince me that I did not receive revelation.  They have suggested that what I experienced was a form of self-hypnosis, or simply the effect of a frenzied, emotional state.

Memories can be enlarged

Back to Blake’s two points, memory first.  I have come to realize that although my early spiritual experiences occurred nearly thirty-five years ago, they are clearer in my mind now then when I first experienced them.  The combination of pondering them and writing about them has helped me to understand that there was much more detail in the experiences than what I first thought.

As Blake pointed out in his essay, this helps me to understand why Joseph Smith could recount the same First Vision experience differently in each of the accounts he relates over the years.  I was so focused on determining my own standing before God in my first youthful manifestation that I had overlooked how deeply and powerfully the Lord spoke to me about missionary labors.

How to explain all this

Blake’s second point was that all logic is created to prove what we already feel is true.  I have had prima facia experiences that overrule any logical inconsistencies I have encountered in what I have learned about the history and people of this church as I have studied it in more depth.  In effect, I have not really experienced cognitive dissonance at all because the spiritual trumps logical.

Let me restate that.  My spiritual revelatory experiences with the Holy Ghost early in my life have proven to be so powerful that it seems that no matter what kind of troubling things I may learn about the men who run or have run this church, I feel inoculated and immune to their effect.  My evangelical friends call this “living in the protective Mormon bubble of a testimony.”

Summary and conclusion

My experiences with the Holy Ghost are not going to be the same as yours.  They may be similar or they may be completely different.  For me, these revelatory events in my youth have provided a foundation for my experiences in this church thus far.  I have encountered much imperfection and weakness in the men who run it, but the spiritual witnesses of my life have protected me.

The bottom line is that I continue to believe that the LDS Church is what it claims to be when it was setup through the prophet Joseph Smith in 1830.  The simple fact is that we can know this for ourselves through revelatory encounters with the Holy Ghost.  No matter what negative things I discover, nothing can overcome the strength of that personal witness if I remain worthy.

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Note about the illustration: This artist’s conception of Joseph translating the Book of Mormon is one that is highly criticized by some members of the church.  They feel it is disingenuous because it does not show Joseph using the seer stones in the hat.  It also shows the plates in plain view of Oliver which was not the case.  Joseph was not to show them to anyone unless commanded of the Lord.

General Authority training – advanced subjects

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Apostles from 1921

Apostles from 1921

OK, you’ve completed all the prerequisite training and life experiences to prepare you for basic General Authority service.  You’ve been a missionary, a bishop, a stake president and have just returned from your latest assignment as a mission president.  You’re somewhat financially stable and are now ready for the real challenge of a call to serve in one of the Quorums of the Seventy.

You’ve been active and faithful in the church all your life and have a deep and abiding testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.  You have enjoyed success and found great joy in helping others come to a knowledge of the Lord through your missionary labors.  You’re proven to be a gifted administrator in the priesthood.  You love to study the scriptures and to teach the gospel.

Responding to difficult questions

The Brethren have decided that all potential General Authorities must now take some additional classes prior to receiving the call.  While we are a lay ministry, it is important that those who are called into positions that represent the church have skills developed in responding to difficult questions.  You know the ones I’m talking about.  President Hinckley was asked some of them.

Since you are on that potential General Authority list, you have been selected to participate in this class.  In order to ensure that the training is effective, we have selected some real-world examples of the kind of questions you can expect to encounter.  While you may have had no experience in studying church history, you will most certainly be asked questions like these.

The really hard list

1. Joseph Smith polygamy and polyandry – why didn’t we know about this?
2. Book of Mormon translation – Peep stone in a hat vs. Urim & Thummim
3. Why are there multiple versions of Joseph Smith’s First Vision story?
4. Why did the three witnesses of the Book of Mormon leave the church?
5. Why is there no real archeological evidence for the Book of Mormon?

6. DNA evidence proved that American Indians have no Israelite blood.
7. Egyptian scholars have proven that the Book of Abraham is a fraud.
8. Did Joseph Smith take the Temple ceremony from the Masons?
9. Could a real prophet have been deceived by the Kinderhook plates?
10. That is so exclusionary of us to claim to be the only true church.

11. Did Brigham Young teach that Adam was God and if so, why?
12. Do we currently teach that God was once a man like we are?
13. How can we really believe that man can become a God?
14. How could the Mountain Meadows Massacre have happened?
15. Why did the church practice polygamy after the 1890 manifesto?

16. Your church seems racist.  Why delay giving priesthood to blacks?
17. Why did President Hinckley deny that we teach long-held doctrines?
18. How was President Hinckley deceived by the Mark Hoffman forgeries?
19. Why do Mormons believe that Lucifer and Jesus Christ are brothers?
20. There are documented cases of spiritual abuse by priesthood leaders.

21. Why is the church opposed to work of LDS scholars and intellectuals?
22. Why did the church cover up President Benson’s Alzheimer’s disease?
23. How can the true Church of Jesus Christ reject those who are gay?
24. Why has church growth stopped in the U.S. – baptisms decreasing?
25. How can the LDS claim to be the true church with so few members?

Effect of the questions

These are legitimate questions raised over the years that can be found today all over the Internet.  Many of our young people are asked these questions by their friends on a regular basis.  They are not being malicious or trying to cause problems.  They simply want answers.  Even though they are difficult questions, some have studied them out in an effort to be able to provide the answers.

Sometimes they have discovered that even long-time members have never heard these questions.  They have been told by well-meaning leaders to just pray about it and they will get their answers.  But there is so much confusing information out there and no official LDS source that addresses these questions that they become discouraged and begin to doubt their testimonies of the church.

Rules of engagement

Your assignment as a new General Authority is to address these questions in a manner that builds faith and encourages continued study.  You must not act surprised if you have never heard any of these questions before or don’t understand why they seem so important to those who are asking.  And you certainly don’t want to be dismissive of those who are bothered by these questions.

You must not defer them to others, claiming that “we have apologists who answer this stuff for us.”  That won’t cut it.  You’re now a General Authority and need to know the answers yourself.  Yes, it’s true that most members of the church have never heard these questions and don’t know that these are issues for some.  And yes, some members would be shocked to learn about all this.

The challenge

So your challenge is great.  How do you answer these questions without causing confusion or doubt among the faithful members who do not question?  How do you respond to the one as the Savior taught?  Those who struggle with these questions are a relatively small number and yet they are very active on the Internet, where many people seek information on the church today.

At the same time, focusing on these questions and taking the time to research them, understand them and to be able to explain them is time consuming.  It takes away from one of the primary missions of the church to declare the gospel.  And yet, it fulfills another part of that mission by perfecting the saints.  Most of these questions are raised by disaffected and former members.

A possible response

It seems that we have failed a generation of bright and intelligent young people who have grown up on the Internet.  We did not anticipate what this amazing communication medium could do to supply facts and details about our history and doctrine.  It’s not that we’ve been purposely trying to hide anything from you. It’s just that you have been exposed to stuff earlier than we figured.

We wish it had been otherwise.  We would have preferred that you had knowledgeable mentors to guide you through your discovery of all these difficult issues.  We were aware of them and decided not to share them or at least not promote discussion of them in the church curriculum.  We are seeing now that this may have been a mistake.  It was not our intention to deceive you.

Personal responsibility

We understand that many of you have felt shocked and betrayed when you first learn about these things.  Please don’t lose faith in the entire church teaching system that has brought you to the point you are now.  We should have found a way to inoculate you before you encountered these troublesome issues but were concerned that exposing you to them early could also be disastrous.

Please accept our apologies for not teaching you about these things in a more open and honest manner.  We accept the responsibility for our failings in this area and will work harder in the future to ensure that the upcoming generation does not have to suffer what you went through.  But we hope that you will also be just as responsible for your own church history education.

Summary and conclusion

This is obviously just a thought exercise.  Please don’t seriously think that my ponderings here have anything to do with the reality of the way the church is responding to this problem.  You may legitimately wonder if some leaders in the church are even aware that this problem exists.  Perhaps those that are aware feel just as frustrated as you that we don’t address it more openly.

For those that have struggled or are struggling with questions like those I have listed, please be aware that there are many thousands of us who have faced and answered the same questions.  We recognize their potential impact to destroy faith, but have found that God is faithful and will send peace to the troubled heart.  Sometimes satisfactory answers will only come over the test of time.

Eight Purposes of Revelation

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Introduction

The Lord promises gifts of the spirit to members of his church. These gifts are given for the edifying and uplifting of those who are in need of strengthening and comforting. All members of the Lord’s church are entitled to either the receipt of these gifts or to be blessed by these gifts as they are exercised by others. I hope and pray that what I am about to share will be accompanied by an outpouring of his spirit as we consider the purposes of revelation. You may recognize these teachings from Elder Dallin H. Oaks.

Revelation is communication from God to man. It can occur in many different ways. Some prophets, like Moses and Joseph Smith have talked to God face to face. Some persons have had personal communication with angels. Other revelations have come through the dreams of sleep, as with Lehi, or in waking visions of the mind. The vision of the redemption of the dead given to Joseph F. Smith in 1918 is one example of a waking vision. It usually comes after much pondering and prayer and is meant to instruct.

In their more familiar form, revelation and inspiration come by means of words or thoughts communicated to the mind. This can come as enlightenment, feelings about proposed courses of action or even by inspiring performances. I believe that most members of the church have received revelation in one form or another. It is our grand privilege to have the manifestations of the spirit every day of our lives. Remember, when we were confirmed members of this church we were commanded to receive the Holy Ghost.

1. To testify

There are times when I have sat in General Conference or in a devotional assembly at BYU or in some other setting where I knew that I was receiving revelation. The spirit of the Lord was testifying to me that the words that I was hearing were true and important to my happiness and salvation. The purpose of this revelation was to strengthen my testimony or to prepare me for some future trial or other requirement where I needed to know for certain the truths that I had heard, felt and had been taught.

I have also experienced revelation flowing through me as I have testified to others of the truthfulness of the doctrine I was teaching. This occurred to me before my mission, while on my mission and many times since then. It is in bearing testimony that the spirit has a chance to confirm our words to others. To me, this is one of the most powerful confirmations that this is the Church of Jesus Christ and that He is vitally concerned with what is taught in His Church. He sends his confirming spirit as promised when we teach truth.

In fact, it is when I have taught and testified of the truth that my own testimony has been strengthened the most. It is an act of faith to teach what others have said is the truth. Believing, we teach it ourselves and are blessed with a confirming witness that it is true. Boyd K. Packer said a testimony is to be found in the bearing of it. That’s why honest missionary work is so sanctifying to those who participate with real intent. Revelation is received and both the bearer and the hearer are edified and rejoice together.

The world in general, and non-believing apostates in particular, do not understand a testimony. To them it is illogical nonsense.

2. To prophesy

My patriarchal blessing promises me the gifts of prophecy and revelation. I have often wondered about these gifts, how I could seek and obtain them and how I could use them to bless others. The testimony of Jesus Christ is the spirit of prophecy. We can all have this spirit and use it to bless ourselves and those over whom we have stewardship. Each of us can receive prophetic revelation illuminating future events of our lives and giving us direction.

For example, on the day that I proposed to my wife, I saw in my mind’s eye a vision of us living together in happiness for many years to come. I sensed and felt what we would be like together when we were older and how we would be happy together. Some twenty-six years later, that day has come. Carol and I are living after the manner of happiness in a way that I foresaw and could have prophesied if it had been appropriate, on that day so long ago.

One of the purposes of prophecy is to speak the words of the Lord pertaining to the salvation of his children. When we teach each other the doctrines of the kingdom we are exercising the gift of prophecy. When we teach under the influence of the spirit what others need to hear to help them return to live again with Heavenly Father, we are speaking under the spirit of prophecy and revelation. I suppose that I am exercising that gift right now as I share this.

Revelation is a sacred subject and is not something that is easily explained to those who have not experienced it. Prophecy is not well understood in the church, but is a real gift that enriches our lives as we seek it and exercise it on behalf of those we love.

3. To comfort

I would hope that the most common kind of revelation enjoyed by members of the true church of Jesus Christ is to receive and to feel the revelation that we call the Comforter. Perhaps it is rarer than I think, for if we all experienced it on a regular basis, our actions would be much more in conformity with the desires of the Lord. The comforter usually accompanies the performing of ordinances or the singing of hymns or the consoling of our spirits at times of grief such as the loss of a loved one. Revelation can be comforting.

Joseph Smith received a comforting revelation while in Liberty Jail. After many months in deplorable conditions, he cried out in agony and loneliness, pleading with the Lord to remember the persecuted saints. The comforting answer came, “My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes. (D&C 121:7-8)

Each of us knows other examples of revelations of comfort. Some have been comforted by visions of departed loved ones or by feeling their presence. A revelation of comfort can also come with a blessing of the priesthood, either from the words spoken or from the feeling communicated in connection with the blessing. Perhaps the greatest of these blessings of comfort can be the assurance received that our sins have been forgiven. This assurance can come as we complete all the steps of repentance and we seek it diligently.

I have felt this comforting assurance on many occasions. I know that the Lord wants to comfort us as we pass through this life.

4. To uplift

At some time in our lives each of us needs to be lifted up from a depression, from a sense of foreboding or inadequacy, or just from a plateau of spiritual mediocrity. I have experienced this feeling of uplift each and every Sunday as I listen closely to the speakers in Sacrament. I also obtain this feeling of uplift when I read the scriptures, especially as I read them out loud either with my wife or alone. We need this uplift of the spirit to empower us to resist evil and to desire to seek after and obtain good things in our lives.

I have found that wholesome music, clean entertainment, beautiful art and literature are ways to uplift my spirit. I enjoy the gifts and accomplishments of others as they seek to share their talents in a way that uplifts and invites reverence and worship of God. It is so easy to get bogged down by the cares of this world. We spend so much time either in work or school that it can become drudgery if we do not have the vision of what we are trying to accomplish. The spirit of uplift from the Lord helps us to recapture that vision.

This uplifting spirit can give us perspective. On a long hike we may experience switchbacks on the trail that seem monotonous. We will also probably encounter places in the trail that appear to be taking us downward or in the opposite direction that we want to go. With this uplifting spirit we can see that the trail leads constantly upward and towards our Heavenly Father. He sees our progress from a distance and calls out to us with words of encouragement and direction. We need this spirit of uplift to see his purposes.

I know that our Heavenly Father is willing to give us this sense of purpose and vision that comes from an uplifting spirit of revelation.

5. To inform

We can receive revelation from God that consists of inspiration. In fact, this is probably the area that most of us have experience in the area of revelation. This may consist of guidance in the choice of words to use on a particular occasion, such as priesthood blessings, and especially in patriarchal blessings. The spirit of revelation may also guide us in words to choose for a sermon or the best way to teach a lesson in a classroom setting. When we are on the Lord’s errand, he promises that he will give us words to speak as needed.

On some sacred occasions, information has been given by face to face conversations with heavenly personages, as in visions related in ancient and modern scriptures. In other circumstances, needed information is communicated by the quiet whisperings of the spirit. When acting in the capacity of a leadership calling, a church leader prays to know whom the Lord would have called to fill a position, and the spirit whispers a name. I have witnessed this revelation on numerous occasions in Bishopric and other priesthood meetings.

The Holy Ghost acts in his office as teacher and revelator as he communicates information from the Lord to man in guiding his church. However, such revelation is not limited to the business of the kingdom or only to priesthood leaders. The Lord can and does reveal information directly to his saints as needed to direct their paths through the journey of life. He can literally give words that will help in performing our duties in church, in school and work.

I have experienced this firsthand as a High Councilor when given assignments to speak on certain topics. I have also felt the hand of the Lord in giving me ideas and words to use in business proposals.

6. To restrain

Elder Oaks teaches that the revelation to restrain is one of the most common forms of revelation. It often comes by surprise, when we have not asked for revelation or guidance on a particular subject. But if we are keeping the commandments of God and living in tune with His Spirit, a restraining force will steer us away from things we should not do. Unfortunately, for many in this world who do not recognize this gift for what it is, it is easily quenched.

Restraint is not popular with the world and is not looked upon as something desirable. This spirit of restraint can warn of us danger and can save us from embarrassment or disappointment. Restraint teaches us exactly how we can better keep our covenants in such a way that we can always feel worthy to call upon the Lord when we are in need of blessings. When we accept the restraints of the Lord, we can have confidence that he will hear and answer our prayers.

In the church we call these restraints standards. In society we call them rules. In government we call them laws. Those who accept the spirit of restraint in their lives will find that their lives are more orderly, more disciplined and more open to enjoyment. They will have a sense of peace that can come in no other way. The spirit of restraint can be recognized by the feeling that something is not appropriate for us or a thought that we had better not do that.

We do not always know why we should heed the spirit of restraint but we can be sure that it comes from a loving Heavenly Father. He would not ask us to avoid certain kinds of behaviors if they were not for our good, our safety, our protection and happiness.

7. To confirm

The Lord explained the confirming type of revelation when Oliver Cowdery failed in his efforts to translate the Book of Mormon: “Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me. But behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I shall cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right. (D&C 9:7-8)

Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles stressed our responsibility to do all that we can before we seek a revelation: “We’re expected to use the gifts and talents and abilities, the sense and judgment and agency with which we are endowed…We’re expected to do everything in our power that we can, and then to seek an answer from the Lord, a confirming seal that we’ve reached the right conclusion.” He then shared a very personal example:

When he set out to choose a companion for eternity, he did not go to the Lord and ask whom he ought to marry. “I went out and found the girl I wanted,” he said. “She suited me;…it just seemed…as though it ought to be…[Then] all I did was pray to the Lord and ask for some guidance and direction in connection with the decision that I’d reached.” I experienced a similar confirming revelation when I asked the Lord about marrying my sweetheart.

The Lord has promised through his servants that we can make every decision in our lives correctly by following this method. Of course some decisions are trivial and do not require this formula. I know that this works from many years of personal experience.

8. To impel

The eighth purpose or type of revelation consists of those instances when the Spirit impels a person to action. This is not a case where a person proposes to take a particular action and the Spirit either restrains or confirms. This is a case where revelation comes when it is not being sought and impels some action not proposed. This type of revelation is obviously less common than other types, but its rarity makes it all the more significant. Elder Oaks has provided us a wonderful example of this kind of revelation:

“As a young girl, my grandmother, Chasty Olsen Harris, had a similar experience. She was tending some children who were playing in a dry riverbed near their home in Castle Dale, Utah. Suddenly she heard a voice that called her by name and directed her to get the children out of the riverbed and up on the bank. It was a clear day, and there was no sign of rain. She saw no reason to heed the voice and continued to play.

“The voice spoke to her again, urgently. This time she heeded the warning. Quickly gathering the children, she made a run for the bank. Just as they reached it, an enormous wall of water, originating with a cloudburst in the mountains many miles away, swept down the canyon and roared across where the children had played. Except for this impelling revelation, she and the children would have been lost.”

The prophet Joseph Smith taught that we may on occasion feel pure intelligence flowing into us. It may give us sudden strokes of ideas, sometimes with great feelings. Acting upon those ideas can bring about great blessings in our lives and in the lives of others.

Summary and conclusion

Elder Oaks taught us of eight purposes of revelation which I have reviewed. Each of these refers to revelations that are received. What about when you don’t receive revelation?

We do not always receive inspiration or revelation when we request it. Sometimes we are delayed in the receipt of revelation, and sometimes we are left to our own judgment. We cannot force spiritual things. It must be so. Our life’s purpose to obtain experience and to develop faith would be frustrated if our Heavenly Father directed us in every act, even in every important act. We must make decisions and experience the consequences in order to develop self-reliance and faith.

Even in decisions we think very important, we sometimes receive no answer to our prayers. This does not mean that our prayers have not been heard. It means only that we have prayed about a decision that, for one reason or another, we should make without guidance by revelation. Perhaps we have asked for guidance in choosing between alternatives that are equally acceptable or equally unacceptable. Similarly, the Spirit of the Lord is not likely to give us revelation on matters that are trivial.

If a matter appears of little or no consequence, we should proceed on the basis of our own judgment. If the choice is important for reasons unknown to us, the Lord will intervene and give us guidance. Where we are living in tune with the Spirit in seeking its guidance, we can be sure that we will receive guidance we need to attain our goal. The Lord will not leave us unassisted when a choice is important to our eternal welfare.

Sources:

1. Revelation by Dallin H. Oaks, BYU devotional 29 Sep 1981

2. Eight Ways God Can Speak to You, New Era, Sep 2004, p4

How our own Liahona works

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I’m sure this point has been made many times and is obvious to any serious student of the Book of Mormon. The Liahona that Lehi found in the desert worked ‘according to the faith and diligence and heed’ which the family gave it. Countless seminary, institute, gospel doctrine and primary teachers have made the point that the gift of the Holy Ghost works just like the Liahona.

I imagine that some astute instructors have lead a discussion of the three requirements that Nephi identified as being necessary for the Liahona to work properly – faith, diligence and heed. But if you haven’t considered it before, join me in my scripture study this morning as I take a closer look at each of the three qualifications.

Faith – This is the first of three actions required to make the Liahona work. Faith is more than just a belief and it starts with trust – a trust in God and in his desire and willingness to bless us. In other words, Lehi and his family knew that this gift was of divine nature and that they would do well to make the conscious effort to believe in the gift and trust that it would direct them. Applied to the gift of the Holy Ghost, we must believe that it is real and that it will work for us.

Diligence – If you have ever looked this word up you know that it carries with it a connotation of the passage of time. Diligence means a sustained, continuous effort over an extended period of time. That is a difficult thing to do for mere mortals, but it is the key to success in just about any worthwhile endeavor. To make the gift of the Liahona work, Lehi and his family had to exercise their faith over an extended period of time – never wavering in their determination to succeed.

Heed – Now this is perhaps the most difficult of the three actions required – First we must believe and trust in God’s gift, next we must be patient and unwavering in our determination to make it work for us and finally, we must pay attention and apply what we learn from the gift. To give heed to something or someone means to listen closely and carefully with the intent of learning something new and then applying it into our lives – doing the action suggested.

There is one more unique feature of the Liahona from which we can draw another analogy. Lehi and his family were so impressed by this feature that it caused them to ‘fear and tremble exceedingly’. What could cause such an unusual reaction? There appeared on the Liahona a new writing, which was plain to be read, which was written and changed from time to time. I guess it was shocking to them to realize that the Lord knew them personally in this manner.

Conclusion: The gift of the Holy Ghost is our personal Liahona. It is a gift and like any gift it must be received and used to realize its full value in our lives. We receive inspiration and direction in our lives according to our faith, diligence and heed which we give to our gift. It is an active gift and must be exercised to remain useful. We must not be surprised when from time to time the Lord gives us specific written direction that is clear to our understanding.

In other words, we will most often find the answers to our prayers in the written word of the scriptures and the written word of the prophets and apostles who speak on behalf of the Lord.

What do you think? There are so many lessons that can be learned from the account of the gift of the Liahona. The scripture reference is 1 Nephi 16:10, 26-29. What have you learned from these scriptures and how do you apply them in your life?