Prophetic Counsel

Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet was referenced twice in conference, with an invitation to study it "in your next family home evening" and find additional testimonies of these true principles in scriptures past and present.

What will I do to "look to the Presidency and recieve instruction"?

Christmas Tree

A Christmas tree is like a bush burned with fire, and not consumed.

Christmas Memory

We were assigned by the bishop to help a sister in the Ward with her finances. We talked about ins and outs, saving receipts, and listing debts. During one of our visits just before Christmas, several hundred dollars went missing: “loan shark came knocking: now he’s paid off”. Close to the same time, we noticed that her Christmas tree went up, cheerily surrounded with presents wrapped and awaiting Christmas morning. Our hearts were broken: what if she was lying to us? Her home teacher asked her about them: “They’re for my family; they don’t understand that I don’t have money for them.”

Concerned that she had lied to us about the missing money, we went by one evening, hoping confront her gently and lecture her on the primacy of honesty. It was easy to bring up the topic in that present-laden living room. The reality broke our hearts. Instead of purchased presents, last year’s wrapping enclosed stacks of old mail.

Blessed are ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.

Christmas

Did Mary and Joseph weep because they couldn't give this First Child more?

Power

The corrupt teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.

Distributing the authority of the priesthood has raced ahead of distributing the power of the priesthood. Power in the priesthood comes through faithful and obedient living in honoring covenants.

Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Eat and Drink What?

It can be disturbing to think of Communion as eating a symbol of flesh and drinking a symbol of blood. However, the priests of the ancient Temple were commanded to eat the atonement offering to sanctify themselves. As a member of His restored kingdom of priests, I eat the symbols of Christ's great and last sacrifice.

Who made my inadequacies

The Lord knows my inadequacies, and despite them, He loves me. He wants me to look to Him and do His work.

Catholic Hospital

I was haunted by a phrase I saw in the boardroom this morning as we reviewed the day's cases: "We serve each person as a Christian would serve Christ himself."
It is too easy to start to think of patients in terms of tests to be followed up on, probabilities of severe vs. mild disease, and more work to be done. Pre-occupied with these gnats, it is easy to question "When saw we thee sick?"
But asking this question is not where the folly lies: both righteous and unrighteous ask, only one ministered.

Lose myself

To lose my life in service to God, I have to give up on being constant and give myself up to daily repenting and changing. If I cling to an identity reputation, I haven’t really lost myself. I can’t anchor on my past: I have to anchor to my future: my hope in the surety of a better world which Jesus the forerunner has entered for us.

AIDS

I had a wonderful experience yesterday. I met a man with AIDS. Usually innocuous spores have preyed upon his weakened state; he was cachectic: his muscles have wasted away. But there was a moment of authenticity:

When I had no desire to step in front of him in a potential queue to partake of goodness.

When I found him no less worthy of God’s overwhelming grace than myself.

When he became a brother and I wanted all of the best for him.

Thoughts

“When a feeling or a thought arises, your intention should not be to … chase it away, hate it, worry about it, or be frightened by it. So what exactly should you be doing concerning such thoughts and feelings? Simply acknowledge their presence.”

Like this: "We are unworthy before thee; because of the fall our natures have become evil continually; nevertheless, O Lord, thou hast given us a commandment that we must call upon thee, that from thee we may receive according to our desires."

Paraphrasing from Miracle of Mindfulness: Trying to chase a thought only reinforces it: it means that you are spending more time on that thought. Let unwholesome thoughts, when they come, slip through your mind after a brief acknowledgement, and welcome and nurture the gentle, generous, and genuine thoughts when they come.

Offended:

If we are not watchful, our injured, childlike spirit will retreat back into the cold, dark crust of our former bloated ego, leaving behind the warm, healing light of the Savior.

How to overcome evil

Dismiss your feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy.
The most powerful cure for any unclean act may be to ignore and avoid it.
Christ suffered temptations but gave no heed unto them.

Gospel Routine

Do I believe that keeping a Gospel routine is living after the manner of happiness?
Yes! I will show my faith by my works.

Daily

Personal Scripture Study

Couple Scripture Study

Family Scripture Study

Personal Prayer

Couple Prayer

Family Prayer

Journaling

Weekly

Church Attendance

Church Participation

Sabbath Day Observance

Calling-related service

Family Home Evening

Monthly

Home-teaching

Visiting Teaching

Calling-related Meetings

Trust in the Lord

Rend that veil of unbelief which keeps you hard of heart and blind of mind.

Come and I will show you the knowledge hid up because of unbelief.

If you go and do what He would have you do, your power to trust Him will grow, and in time you will be overwhelmed to find that He has come to trust you.

Lame

When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.

This is a commandment that I routinely disregard. I know people who are poor and people who are "lame" according to both ancient and modern-day definitions. I usually don’t call them to dinner: I usually think they will make me uncomfortable. Despite my show of generosity, I jealously guard my celebration from their putative disruption so that its sole purpose is my enjoyment.

Am I willing to show evidence of my love? Am I willing to "suffer" them to come to me, or more importantly, to come unto Christ?

Enemy

Moroni’s love for his enemies was strong enough that while being hunted by them, he wrote to save and bless their descendants.

Suffering

Christ communicates His love to humankind by showing how much He suffered to help humankind.

The three Nephites were promised a fulness of joy for being willing to suffer sorrow for the sins of the world, to bring the souls of men unto Christ while the world shall stand.

Likewise, I look back with peculiar delight upon the scenes that early Latter-day Saints passed through, the privations they endured, the untiring zeal that they manifested, the all but insurmountable difficulties that they overcame in laying the foundation of a work that brought about the glory and blessing which I realize.

Am I willing to show evidence of my love by suffering?

Gifts

What doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift?
It's not about how the Lord feels: He makes it about us.

Gifts are not designed to transfer earthly possessions: 

they are supposed to bind giver and receiver together in love.

The benefit of the gift is not contained in the gift: 
there is so much more in building the relationship.


No giving as a "social obligation". 
No more "gracious" receiving and then focusing on the gift.


It is about the relationship.

Courage

I am preparing to teach about "Living Righteously in an Unrighteous World" and "Moral Courage".
While I love the story of courage displayed by Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail, I worry that when I tried to use that courage, I pre-judged others as "fiends of the infernal pit". I am more inclined to teach from more recent counsel: "[Have] the courage to refrain from judging others" and "Never is the soul nobler and more courageous than when we forgive."

Gratitude

The most recent Deacon's quorum lesson: View Download

Examples

I am also giving the Deacon's Quorum lesson this morning: View Download

Gifts of the Spirit

I gave the lesson in church Sunday:  View Download(pdf)

I have much to learn about spiritual gifts.

Differences

Tonight’s lesson was about loving people who look different than us.

We talked about minorities, poverty, cerebral palsy, obesity, ‘beauty/ugliness’, people who are mean/nice, smoking, tattoos, earrings. I’ve never felt so strongly the ridiculousness of ranking/prioritizing people.

We asked our son whether he knew anyone that looks different.

What a bizarre question: everyone is different!

Remix

As I have done to you, so may it be done to me: a powerfully personalized form of the Golden Rule.

Who is my Enemy?

I usually excuse myself from the commandment to love my enemy in the same way that a certain lawyer excused himself from the commandment to love his neighbor: Who is my enemy?

Who am I angry with? Whom do I wish ill? Whose suffering do I dismiss as just reward for errant choices? It is unworthy of us as Christians to think that those who suffer deserve their suffering.

Who is my opponent? My rival? My competitor?

Whose perspective do I seek to dismiss, rather than to understand? Whom do I want people to stop paying attention to?

A Patient's Death

Things that I love about being present when a patient dies:

People stop paying attention to numbers, alarms, and medicines, and start paying attention to people.

The sacredness of life is recognized.

It is a moment infused with the same inherent holiness as a birth, or a marriage.

I can ensure that the patient didn’t die alone.

It gives me permission to show my emotional involvement in patient care.

It brings me face to face with a truth that most people expend vast energies denying, making me more honest.

Sick?

Are you sick or afflicted?

No, thanks, I’ll be alright.

Come and I will heal you.

What marvelous opportunities to experience God’s compassionate mercy are lost because I refuse to recognize my neediness and ask for help?

Work

My Father worketh, and I work.

I am startled.

Maybe because I picture God as a tranquil part of a perennial Sabbath,

I have imagined Him merely speaking, and it was done.

The Sabbath is but one in seven days: the same God moves mountains, divides waters, and works on dusty creations.

Although He may rest on the Sabbath, He never sleeps.

And whenever He sees me ready to receive His help, even on the Sabbath, My Father worketh, and I work.

God is not a God of laziness: His miracles are not effortless.

In spite of the pain it entails, God works hard to bless me.

Real, exertional work is a part of celestial glory.

Climbing

Whose ox have I taken? Whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed?

Not that I could be justified by these questions: there is a competition for things: Whom have I stepped on in process of climbing? How will I reduce the damage that I do and delegate wrongs that I cannot right into the hands of God, who can?

Sinners

A woman which was a sinner washed the Savior’s feet with her tears. The Pharisee thought that Jesus should not have let the woman touch Him.

Are sinners best abandoned as untouchables?

I should wrap my arms around sinners, trying to show them the Father’s love, as the Prodigal’s father who saw him when he was yet a great way off and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

Will I be tainted by having a sinner for a friend?

I should strive to continually include sinners in my circle of close associates: they that are whole need no physician, and friendship is a celestial therapy.

Will God judge me “guilty by association”?

To the contrary, the Judgment may hold me guilty by dissociation: For I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

I have an unspoken aim never to have sinner for a close associate. Why should I strive to be opposite from the Savior? Rather, I should aim to have sinners as my close associates.

Relationships

Relationships are strengthened by forgiveness, not freedom from offense.
Simplicity will replace duplicity as I stop looking for fig leaves, preferring an honest image of who I am.
I will admit my faults, frankly repent of every one, and trust forgiveness to preserve treasured relationships.

Eye single

As a teenager, I self-righteously checked whether any girl I saw was dressed modestly. Of course they weren’t. Ironically, watching the lines meant that I saw every immodesty. Look for faults and the whole world is miserably dark.

Open up your eyes and see God’s goodness everywhere. See the depth of His condescension to dwell with mankind. Ponder the fullness of His mercy toward you, your friends, your enemies, and unmet generations. Let everyone you see display God’s goodness: then, if your eye is single, your whole body will be filled with light.

Visions

What can I do to receive the visions that the Lord has promised?

• “every soul [shall see my face and know that I am] who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments”
• “all the pure in heart [shall see God] that shall come into it… my glory shall rest upon it; Yea, and my presence shall be there, for I will come into it, … inasmuch as my people build a house unto me in the name of the Lord, and do not suffer any unclean thing to come into it”
• “All the faithful may see the vision of the degrees of glory … by the power of the Holy Spirit, which God bestows on those who love him, and purify themselves before him; To whom he grants this privilege of seeing and knowing for themselves”.

Is it not because the Lord rations visions (He gives generously), nor that He reserves them for periods of restoration (visions are intended for all times). The angel didn’t warn Nephi that most people don’t see visions like Lehi. Nor did the angel discourage him when he asked “to behold the things which my father saw.”

How would seeing a vision affect me? How would I see my position after having received it? If I would think myself superior to those around me or an obligate leader (I have trouble with that now), then my reaction is damning: it stops further light. I need to be content to be taught as a humble follower of Christ and not necessarily a leader.

Harvest

The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few… despite frequent representations of laborers filling chapels and classrooms, scarce among their neighbors as seekers of truth. God is not a corrupt tree that brings forth a scarcity of truth-seeking children. A dearth of work cannot console my idleness: instead, white fields magnify the tragedy of my slothfulness.

Help me perceive the plenteous field-ripened grain in the humanity surrounding me!

Who?

Whosoever perishes, perishes unto himself: whosoever lives, lives to others.

Holiness is

Holiness is not being redeemed while casting others down to hell: holiness is loving, redeeming, and extending to those who don’t seem chosen.

Inadequate

I went home teaching. I felt inadequate; they said that I’ve been great.

Don’t let guilt about not being the best curtail efforts to be better.

People

There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Being with people who have had much forgiven is a powerful spiritual boost.

Initiative

Nephi has amazing initiative. He didn’t say: “Lord, I don’t even have tools: how should I make a ship?” I might say that. And Nephi might be right in accusing me, as he did his brothers, that I was desirous that I might not labor. How often do I say to the Lord: “Home teaching? I don’t even have an appointment!” or companion, or lesson. Where might I go that I may find an appointment?

Hurry is Waste

I stole extra minutes in the library.

I got scared the bus would leave me.

People were obstacles: I out-navigated them.

The grounds held me back: I went faster than they stretched.

I beat the bus to the stop.

More wasted time!

When I hold my time all-valuable, everyone else is an inefficiency, an opponent: meant to be squashed.

Zoram

Slave to a ruthless master, transformed by oath and friendship to an equal child and inheritor of a Promised Land: remarkable type of Christ’s adopting us into His family, redeemed as His children.

Charity Talk

I gave a talk in church today: View Download(pdf)

These prior posts were skeleton-ized for the talk:

Sometimes I think too much about God and not enough about His children

Cringing at dissonant connections between perfect Father and wayward child

Acting in accordance with the infinite value of self, others, and God

These were included in prior versions of the talk:

Southern hospitality

Whole Armor of God

These could have been included, but were not

Buckets of slimy, disgusting sins

Lone-righteousness

Mood Swing

The novice penitent tours polar extremes: from “I am no devil, for there is none” to “command the mountains to fall upon me; hide me from God’s presence.” 

But quintessential repentance is not a wild mood swing. Can the soul fully grope that previously found safe pasture? Novice spirituality and experienced spirituality are different: fatalism’s attraction flickers while sturdy commitment compounds value.

Coming Closer

From a distance where only an invitation could be sent,

to a horizon silhouette with arms outstretched,

to someone you can hear calling you,

the closer you come the more you feel Him reaching toward you.

Judge not, that ye be not judged.

Bedtime, lights out.

I was singing. Instead of getting quietly sleepy, he was break-dancing.

The lyric ‘men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression’ gently chided my thought that his spastic, disobedient nature was a moral error needing corrective punishment. Likewise my spastic, disobedient, quick-to-punish/slow-to-do-good nature.

‘Because of the fall our natures have become evil continually; nevertheless we call upon thee that we may receive’ ‘a clean heart, and a right spirit.’

And He wept

“The God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept,” for the hardened wicked, unhindered by His holiness, peace, justice, and kindness, His endless mercy, or by knowing that these were only a few in an infinite spate of creations. Hardly the rage that “the fullness of His wrath” might imply. This sensitive display turns on end any perception of a God who violently reacts to irreverence. 

Accomplishments

Earthly accomplishments have eternal value.

Accomplishments change me: after 5 years, for the first time I’m going to class with people who don’t have straight teeth. I’m learning to think more of them and less of teeth.

Accomplishments prepare me to serve: they led me to visit prisoners and addicts and gain compassion for them.

I expect to be threatened and have heartache. I don’t expect that the Lord will soften adversity’s punches because of my accomplishments. But He has: more people confide in me, and becoming attached nurtures me despite troubles.

The Least of These

Sometimes I think too much about God and not enough about His children, a devilish bent on goodness worthy of Screwtape: “Do what you will, there is going to be some benevolence, as well as some malice, in your patient's soul. The great thing is to direct the malice to his immediate neighbours whom he meets every day and to thrust his benevolence out to the remote circumference, to people he does not know. The malice thus becomes wholly real and the benevolence largely imaginary.” Not my beneficence only, also God’s: His goodness will only become real to me when I incorporate His mercy into my daily interaction with His children.

Online Scriptures

http://scriptures.byu.edu/ is a linked index of conference talks since 1942, combined with Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith and Journal of Discourses. Several of my blog entries have been meditations on the most frequently cited scriptures from the most recent conferences.

Conference talk rewritten

based on Richard G. Scott, “To Acquire Spiritual Guidance,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 6–9

[I want you to assume for a moment that you are trapped by pornography. We are aware that pornography often affects] youth at a very early age. [It may have occurred despite] preventative action to avoid [this] tragedy. We hope you have heard and will continue to hear your] stake presidents and bishops [] warn of this evil [and] invite [you] to come to [them] for help.

[Maybe your addiction started the way that it does for so many:] curiosity that is fueled by its stimulation and is [then] justified by the false premise that when done privately, it does no harm to anyone else. [But then] the experimentation [went] deeper, with more powerful stimulations, until [you realized you were trapped by] a terribly immoral, addictive habit.

[Whether this is actually happening to you, or has happened to you, or has happened to someone you know, Christ’s invitation to you is the same: He invites you to repent, develop spirituality, and receive the stunning revelation of God’s forgiveness. Regardless of what sins hold you captive now, as you seek the Lord through repentance, pondering, and prayer; and] personally [] master the principles of being guided by the Spirit… the Savior can guide you to resolve [the] challenges of life and enjoy great peace and happiness. [As] you pray with all the fervor of your soul with humility and gratitude, you can learn to be consistently guided by the Holy Spirit in all aspects of your life. I have confirmed the truthfulness of [this] principle in the crucible of my own life.

Whether it be through the printed page, movies, television, obscene lyrics, vulgarities on the telephone, or flickering personal computer screen, pornography is overpoweringly addictive and severely damaging. [In the midst of your sin, you may have been blinded] to [the] reality [of its] deadening [effect on your] spirituality, conscience, and reason. Well did inspired Nephi declare, “And [the devil] will … pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, … and thus [he] cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.”3 [You may not have been able to see the] selfishness [manifest or] the emotional and spiritual damage caused [by this] abhorrent activity, especially [to those who love and trust you most]. Satan [may have blocked this and other] spiritual communication by inducing [you], through temptation, to violate the laws upon which spiritual communication is founded.

A feeling of remorse after a mistake is a fertile soil wherein repentance can flower. For many, [this] addiction cannot be overcome without help, [but it can be] overcome by repentance and righteousness. Make a total commitment to overcome it now. Pray urgently for help and support. Be patient and obedient. Don’t give up. Someone who is increasingly repulsed by grievous sin and who exercises self-restraint outside [of] human influence has character. Repentance will be more efficacious for such an individual. An individual with foundation standards and an enduring commitment to obey them is not easily led astray.

[Satan may have tried] to convince [you] that [you] are not able to receive [] guidance from the Lord. [It is not true!] I bear witness that the Lord, through the Holy Ghost, can speak to your mind and heart.

[One of the first revelations that many of the Lord’s chosen servants have obtained was the reassurance that the power of our Lord’s majestic Atonement had redeemed them from their sins. Many received this revelation despite atrociously sinful pasts: Saul, Alma. Others also received it, both early in their revelations, and, as Joseph would show, throughout his discipleship. “Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee” (Enos 1: 5), “[Emma], thy sins are forgiven thee” (D&C 25: 3), “my son, [Joseph], thy sins are forgiven thee” (D&C 90: 1). Seek this revelation earnestly, with real intent. “Remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men” (Moro. 10: 3). Let the Lord’s redeeming love encircle you (Alma 26: 15)! Seek forgiveness “that this cloud of darkness may be removed from overshadowing [you]” (Hel. 5: 40).] Sometimes [] impressions are just general feelings. Sometimes the direction comes so clearly and so unmistakably that it can be written down like spiritual dictation.4

The inspiring influence of the Holy Spirit can be overcome or masked by strong emotions, such as anger, hate, passion, fear, or pride. When such influences are present, it is like trying to savor the delicate flavor of a grape while eating a jalapeño pepper. Both flavors are present, but one completely overpowers the other. In like manner, strong emotions overcome the delicate promptings of the Holy Spirit. Find a quiet place. By careful practice, through the application of correct principles, and by being sensitive to the feelings that come, you will gain spiritual guidance.

Impressions of the Spirit can come in response to urgent prayer or unsolicited when needed. Sometimes the Lord reveals truth to you when you are not actively seeking it, such as when you are in danger and do not know it. However, the Lord will not force you to learn. You must exercise your agency to authorize the Spirit to teach you. President John Taylor wrote: “Joseph Smith, upwards of forty years ago, said to me: ‘Brother Taylor, you have received the Holy Ghost. Now follow the influence of that Spirit, and it will lead you into all truth, until by and by, it will become in you a principle of revelation.’ Then he told me never to arise in the morning without bowing before the Lord, and dedicating myself to him during that day.”1 As you make this a practice in your life, you will be more perceptive to the feelings that come with spiritual guidance. Then, when that guidance comes, sometimes when you least expect it, you will recognize it more easily.

Have patience as you are perfecting your ability to be led by the Spirit. I am convinced that there is no simple formula or technique that would immediately allow you to master the ability to be guided by the voice of the Spirit. Our Father expects you to learn how to obtain that divine help by exercising faith in Him and His Holy Son, Jesus Christ.

Were you to receive inspired guidance just for the asking, you would become weak and ever more dependent on Them. They know that essential personal growth will come as you struggle to learn how to be led by the Spirit. I witness that as you gain experience and success in being guided by the Spirit, your confidence in the impressions you feel can become more certain than your dependence on what you see or hear. What may appear initially to be a daunting task will be much easier to manage over time as you consistently strive to recognize and follow feelings prompted by the Spirit. Your confidence in the direction you receive from the Holy Ghost will also become stronger.

Father in Heaven knew that you would face challenges and be required to make some decisions that would be beyond your own ability to decide correctly. In His plan of happiness, He included a provision for you to receive help with such challenges and decisions during your mortal life. That assistance will come to you through the Holy Ghost as spiritual guidance. It is a power, beyond your own capability, that a loving Heavenly Father wants you to use consistently for your peace and happiness.

Spirituality yields two fruits. The first is inspiration to know what to do. The second is power, or the capacity to do it. These two capacities come together. That’s why Nephi could say, “I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded.”2 He knew the spiritual laws upon which inspiration and power are based. Yes, God answers prayer and gives us spiritual direction when we live obediently and exercise the required faith in Him.

Throughout the ages, many have obtained guidance helpful to resolve challenges in their lives by following the example of respected individuals who resolved similar problems. Today, world conditions change so rapidly that such a course of action is often not available to us.

Personally, I rejoice in that reality because it creates a condition where we, of necessity, are more dependent upon the Spirit to guide us through the vicissitudes of life. Therefore, we are led to seek personal inspiration in life’s important decisions.

Now I share an experience that taught me a way to gain spiritual guidance. One Sunday I attended the priesthood meeting of a Spanish branch in Mexico City. I vividly recall how a humble Mexican priesthood leader struggled to communicate the truths of the gospel in his lesson material. I noted the intense desire he had to share those principles he strongly valued with his quorum members. He recognized that they were of great worth to the brethren present. In his manner, there was an evidence of a pure love of the Savior and love of those he taught.

His sincerity, purity of intent, and love permitted a spiritual strength to envelop the room. I was deeply touched. Then I began to receive personal impressions as an extension of the principles taught by that humble instructor. They were personal and related to my assignments in the area. They came in answer to my prolonged, prayerful efforts to learn.

As each impression came, I carefully wrote it down. In the process, I was given precious truths that I greatly needed in order to be a more effective servant of the Lord. The details of the communication are sacred and, like a patriarchal blessing, were for my individual benefit. I was given specific directions, instructions, and conditioned promises that have beneficially altered the course of my life.

Subsequently, I visited the Sunday School class in our ward, where a very well-educated teacher presented his lesson. That experience was in striking contrast to the one enjoyed in the priesthood meeting. It seemed to me that the instructor had purposely chosen obscure references and unusual examples to illustrate the principles of the lesson. I had the distinct impression that this instructor was using the teaching opportunity to impress the class with his vast store of knowledge. At any rate, he certainly did not seem as intent on communicating principles as had the humble priesthood leader.

In that environment, strong impressions began to flow to me again. I wrote them down. The message included specific counsel on how to become more effective as an instrument in the hands of the Lord. I received such an outpouring of impressions that were so personal that I felt it was not appropriate to record them in the midst of a Sunday School class. I sought a more private location, where I continued to write the feelings that flooded into my mind and heart as faithfully as possible. After each powerful impression was recorded, I pondered the feelings I had received to determine if I had accurately expressed them in writing. As a result, I made a few minor changes to what had been written. Then I studied their meaning and application in my own life.

Subsequently I prayed, reviewing with the Lord what I thought I had been taught by the Spirit. When a feeling of peace came, I thanked Him for the guidance given. I was then impressed to ask, “Was there yet more to be given?” I received further impressions, and the process of writing down the impressions, pondering, and praying for confirmation was repeated. Again I was prompted to ask, “Is there more I should know?” And there was. When that last, most sacred experience was concluded, I had received some of the most precious, specific, personal direction one could hope to obtain in this life. Had I not responded to the first impressions and recorded them, I would not have received the last, most precious guidance.

What I have described is not an isolated experience. It embodies several true principles regarding communication from the Lord to His children here on earth. I believe that you can leave the most precious, personal direction of the Spirit unheard because you do not respond to, record, and apply the first promptings that come to you.

What can you do to enhance your capacity to be led to correct decisions in your life? What are the principles upon which spiritual communication depends? What are the potential barriers to such communication that you need to avoid?

[May you experience that revelation that your sins are forgiven and move forward in righteousness. May we reach out with love towards those trapped in the] tantalizing, seductive web of pornography [that] has caused [so much] grief, suffering, heartache, and [has] destroyed [so many] marriages. [May we as a people help one another depend on Christ to become clean of this] self-degenerating, [] contagious, [and] spiritually corrosive [addiction, so that it will no longer] limit [our] individual [capacities] to be led by the Spirit. [As we move forward in righteousness, may we live with Samuel’s prayer always in our hearts: “Speak [Lord]; for thy servant heareth.” (1 Sam. 3: 9-10)]