Someone Else's Shoes

One of my favorite quotes is taken from four lines of a much larger poem by Adam Lindsay Gordon (1833-1870) called Finis Exoptatus, which I excerpt for you here:

"Life is mostly froth and bubble;
Two things stand like stone:
Kindness in another's trouble,
Courage in your own."

It zeroes in on something that could use improvement in our society today: being sensitive to the situations of others. One of the common tools of fiction writers these days is to have the protagonist say to the victim of a crime, “Listen, I know what you're going through, but ...” And the victim interrupts with, “Oh no you don't! You can't know how I feel! Nobody can!”

This is a common sentiment in our times, that we are all alone and when something goes wrong we are inconsolable. And the saying, “To understand a person, you must first walk in their shoes,” hangs in the air like a forbidding wall to keep anyone who wishes to sympathize from crossing the boundary of our trust.

To illustrate the point, we are often reminded that Marie Antoinette, when told that the peasants had no bread, said , “Let them eat cake.”¹ Some would tell us that she was oblivious of the problems of the peasants. How could she know how bad they had it? She was surrounded by incredible wealth and protected from a knowledge of their problems by the separation of the classes.²

While making an excuse for poor Marie in this manner, we are really echoing a false notion of personal isolation, and we are reinforcing the abdication of our responsibility to our fellow man.

In a recent Sacrament Meeting, the visiting High Council speaker made a profound observation. Citing the first of the Ten Commandments ³, he pointed out that to love God is a commandment, and therefor love is a choice!

We must choose to love God, and we must choose to love our fellowman. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.⁴ These two constitute the framework upon which is built the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are our brother's keepers.⁵

But how do we get in the other person's shoes? Our imaginations can only bring us close. We say, “I can only imagine what you must be feeling.” And sometimes we are bold and say, “I had a similar thing happen to me; I didn't enjoy it.” But we can't really get inside someone else's head and feel what they feel.

The remaining distance between where they are and where we are can only be covered by love. No two individuals' experiences are the same, and to walk in each other's shoes without love is an impossibility.

The kind of love we are talking about here is Charity, the pure love of God⁶. It has no strings. It knows no limits. And its focus is upon the betterment of someone else.⁷ And to distill our mortal feelings into the right kind of love requires a surrender of our own will and desires to that of God, Himself.

The accomplishment of such a thing has only happened once, in its most perfect sense. It was about A.D. 34, and the occasion was the Passover of the Jews in Jerusalem. The actual location was a small garden of olive trees on the side of the Mount of Olives. While his disciples attempted to keep watch⁸, their master, Jesus of Nazareth, went a little further on and prostrated himself to begin a process whereby he would apply his own teachings about loving his neighbor and would end up counting every soul that has or would ever live on the earth.⁹

Now this counting was not to obtain numbers in a ledger, but to transcend time and space and spend conscious effort to understand the situation of each person, to suffer with them ¹⁰, to suffer for them ¹¹, and to become a shield of mercy against that justice which would have destroyed their chances to be returned safely home to the Father of their spirits.¹²

In taking upon Himself the sins of all mankind, one at a time, Jesus of Nazareth became Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of Israel and the Savior of the world. By demonstrating Love in its purest form He was empowered to not only walk beside us, but also to walk in our shoes.

Those who understand this fact become aware that Christ is with them always.¹³ And He knows what they are going through when no one else does. And there is no way to push Him away as we do our other companions on the journey of life. And every time we think we are waiting on the Lord, it always turns out that He is waiting on us. He waits for us to notice He is there.¹⁴ He waits for us to experiment on His words.¹⁵ He waits for us to ask for help. He waits at the door and knocks.¹⁶

May we have the courage, in our troubles, to notice He is there, to answer the door, and to let Him comfort us in a way that only Love allows.

1 I acknowledge that this is mostly cliche'. I recommend the wikipedia article, on Marie Antoinette, see especially the final section entitled, "Historical legacy and popular culture" where the origin of this is explained.

2 This is probably a false view because Marie Antionette was aware of the rising bread prices due to a harsh winter in 1788-1789. (Search the above mentioned article for "bread prices".) But Marie was indeed a victim of rumor mongering which was partly responsible for her downfall.

3 See Exodus 20:2-6, see also Mark 12:28-30

4 See Matthew 22:37-40

5 See Genesis 4:9

6 See Moroni 7:47

7 See the Parable of the Good Samaritan – Luke 10:27-37

8 See Matthew 26:36-45

9 See Mosiah 15:10-11 for an explanation of the Messianic passage, Isaiah 53:10

10 See Mosiah 24:13-14 – God not only delivers his people but visits them in their afflictions. See also Alma 7:11-12

11 See Mosiah 3:7

12 See John 14:2-3

13 See 3 Nephi 18:11

14 See Doctrine and Covenants 88:62-68

15 See Alma 34:3-4

16 See Revelation 3:20

Search the Scriptures

Introduction

The title is simple enough. But the meaning can be profound when we consider what the different methodologies are. First, it is my opinion that everyone should read the Book of Mormon from front to back, a little bit each day. Second, the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would have us study the scriptures by topic. Third, there is great power in the scriptures to get straight to the heart of the matter if we open them randomly and look for the message there. Lastly, the study by topic and at random need to be tempered by study within context. All four approaches are valid, and each has its place. In fact, they must each have a place in our daily living.

The word of God has been likened to a rod of iron which leads to the tree of life.¹ And although it can arrive in our minds in many ways, the one over which we have the greatest control is the study of the scriptures.

The Book of Mormon - Keystone

The Book of Mormon was written by Mormon on plates that he made himself. He took the stories of his predecessors and copied them there. And he retold the stories that inspired him. Although he was guided by God, the foundation of what to put in and what to leave out had to do with what had impressed him over the years of his own study and what things, retold by his parents, made him the man of faith that he became.

The organization of the Book of Mormon is plainly chronological. But it is also leading the reader down the path that the people of Nephi followed as they prepared for the coming of the Savior, Jesus Christ. In our day, we, too, are preparing ourselves for Christ's return. The parallels must not be ignored. We read about the various cities which chose to move away from the Gospel and those which only sometimes strayed. And we see the power of being left in the dark long enough to treasure light when it is given.² And we are also transformed by the miracles as they come.

The greatest message of the Book of Mormon is that Jesus Christ is the God of Israel and has visited His lost sheep³ to make it possible for there to be one fold and one shepherd in our day. This is why the whole thing deserves to be consumed from front to back. Joseph Smith's definitive remark on its importance to the man or woman of God is the best argument for this method: “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”⁴

Topical Study

All of the scriptures are given by the Holy Ghost for the profit of God's children⁵. But the prophets did not write in a vacuum. They were aware of other scriptures that touched on the same topic and leveraged the same language.⁶ There is a coloring of meaning to be had by studying the various passages of scripture which contain similar themes. Looking at scriptures that have similar words or phrases can enhance our understanding. As we study the scriptures topically we gain the benefit of clarifications that have been made when one prophet has spoken about the words of another.

Random, Inspired Searching

Sometimes, when I am troubled by a particular idea, or when the world seems to come down on me especially hard, the most important thing I can do is open the scriptures at random and see what I can glean from them. I have been led to some of the most profound lessons by this method. I have also been led to scriptures that do not in fact exist on paper.

What I mean by this last statement is that I have read a scripture, imagining that it said something only to find when I returned to the place that the scripture was something else. When I was first coming to know of the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I asked for a Bible for my birthday. In it I found a scripture which said, fools fold their hands and pray. I had been taught to fold my hands when I prayed. So I suddenly thought this was wrong. When the Mormon missionaries came to teach me, they asked me to offer a prayer and I refused because I “knew” my way was wrong. When I saw them fold their arms and bow their heads as they had been taught as little children I knew that God had sent them to be my teachers, even though they were only two or three years older than I was. I later returned to the Bible to look at the words of Ecclesiastes again.⁷ It doesn't mention prayer at all in that spot. I was led to see or imagine something that would make me teachable in the presence of the missionaries. Great is the value of scriptures that are meant just for you.

Contextual Clarification

When we look at an isolated scripture, it is important to maintain an understanding of context. When we read a verse of scripture without looking at where it comes from we can sometimes infer a meaning that is not true.

Someone I respect once said in a Gospel Doctrine class that the use of a semicolon was equivalent to the use of the conjunction, “but.” This is wrong. A semicolon is intended to link two related statements to each other. For example, “The gauge read Empty; the gas had been totally consumed.”is a correct usage of the semicolon without the two statements conveying opposite meanings.

This fact becomes important in the case of a misinterpretation of scripture which has been perpetuated into an English translation which is newer than the King James Version. In Hebrews 1:1-2 we find Paul's preamble to his epistle to have been mangled in the name of clarification. The New International Version of the Bible quotes Paul thus:

1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,

2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.⁸

But the King James Version says:

1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;⁹

Notice that the phrase, “in the past”, has been moved to the beginning of the sentence so as to imply that all communication from God through prophets is over. Instead of being an example of how God works among His children, it becomes only a history lesson.

This is not Paul's intent. He is attempting to persuade Jews, not alienate them. He is including the Son in the list of prophets as the greatest of them.

Notice that the word “but” has been introduced at the beginning of the second verse. The first verse has been reworded so that “but” could be insinuated into the text and reinforce a difference between ancient prophets and Christ, Himself.

The conjunction “but” should be used only to join two contradictory phrases of equal weight. .It does not belong in Paul's statement because Christ is the greatest Prophet.

So what gripes me is that someone intending to do the world a favor and to simplify Paul's words has changed the meaning of the phrases and thereby reinforced a heresy.

The heresy is that God sends no more prophets.

Sanity prevails because context is a tool to understanding. Context can come from knowing the author, the overall topic, the audience, and the train of thought which precedes a particular statement.

Getting the Message

The most important lesson to be learned from the scriptures is that Jesus Christ is the promised Messiah of the Jews and that he is the son of God and the promised Savior of all mankind.¹⁰ All scripture worthy of the name contains some testimony to that fact. Christ, when speaking to the Jews, used the phrase which is the title of this article, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”¹¹

1 See 1 Nephi 11:25

2 See Alma 23:6

3 See 3 Nephi 15:21

4 See The Book of Mormon, Introduction, sixth paragraph.

5 See 2 Timothy 3:16

6 See Matthew 27:46 notice that Matthew quotes Christ while on the cross, but Christ is quoting Psalm 22:1

7 See Ecclesiastes 4:5

8 See the New International Version (NIV) of Hebrews 1:1-2

9 See King James Version (KJV) of Hebrews 1:1-2

10 See the Book of Mormon title page

11 See John 5:39

Refuge from the Storm

In these times of frustration and worry, I have been reminded that all storms can be weathered, but not all can be survived. I say that because we are sometimes called upon to submit to the will of the Lord, in all things, and to even lay down our lives as witnesses of the truths we know. In the process, we lay down all that we are and take up something new to replace it. And in that sense we have not survived, but rather been reborn. This is the nature of the storms of the soul.

Such a storm was experienced by the Jews of Daniel's day, and their leaders, which included Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. They were commanded (along with all Jews, captive in Babylon) to worship an image of gold created by Nebuchadnezzer. This they refused to do. And a great furnace was prepared, to threaten them if they didn't comply. During the confrontation the king asked what god would save them? Their answer is profound:

17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.

18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

The significant phrase, "but if not," indicates their willingness to become victims of Nebuchadnezzer's wrath rather than break the commandment of the Lord.

As we know, they were delivered. The Lord, himself, was seen conversing with them in the furnace. But they were willing to let it be otherwise. Or in other words, their will was swallowed up in the will of the Lord.

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“The Hiding Place” is a book by a woman named Corrie ten Boom, a Dutch woman caught up in the Nazi occupation of Holland in World War II. It talks about helping the Jews of Holland to escape the Nazis.

In 2009, I found the book on the shelf again and re-read her story. She was imprisoned, and suffered all kinds of things because she was caught trying to protect these people. Most were helped to move to the Dutch countryside with forged papers. But some looked "too Jewish" to be helped that way. These people stayed in her house. She had a special wall constructed in her bedroom so that these people could hide if there was a raid. The hiding place was eventually discovered, most of her family was killed, and she and her sister, Betsie, were sent to the Ravensbruck concentration camp. Betsie died there, but Corrie survived. And she spent her time after the war healing the wounds caused by the conflict. And she gave lectures about her experience, telling of the power of God's forgiveness.

During one of these lectures, a man approached her, who she recognized as one of her former guards, one of the cruelest.

“You mentioned Ravensbrück in your talk,” he said. “I was a guard there. . . . But since that time, . . . I have become a Christian.” He explained that he had sought God’s forgiveness for the cruel things he had done. He extended his hand and asked, “Will you forgive me?”

Corrie described the experience:

“It could not have been many seconds that he stood there—hand held out—but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.

“ . . . The message that God forgives has a . . . condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. . . .

“ . . . ‘Help me!’ I prayed silently. ‘I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.’

“ . . . Woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. As I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“ ‘I forgive you, brother!’ I cried. ‘With all my heart.’

“For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely, as I did then.”

Corrie ten Boom

Until 2009, I had always imagined that the “Hiding Place” was talking about the tiny space behind the special wall in the ten Boom's home. What I found out was that she called Jesus, The Hiding Place. He was the one who helped her through her trials. And it was He who helped her extend her hand to the Ravensbruck guard.

Sometimes the sacrifice we are called upon to make is not to be cast into a furnace, but to extend a forgiving hand. And yet, in the moment of decision we receive the reward.

One of my favorite LDS hymns, because we use it during the moments before the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, is called "Where Can I Turn for Peace?". I recommend you go to this page to experience it.

The Lord is our Hiding Place, He visits us in the furnace of our affliction, and He is the one who stills the waves, and whispers, "Peace."

Recognizing Inspiration

Organizing this blog entry has been a struggle. And I think the reason is that I have a tendency to have my own agenda. I put certain elements into the text only to have the Lord take them out.

It is hard to prepare something on personal revelation if you try to ignore the personal revelation you get in the middle of the preparation.

On March 19^th I marked the 40^th anniversary of my baptism. That means I have been learning about personal revelation for forty years and I'm convinced that I'm not done yet.

Forty years ago I was confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I received the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and I began a process of learning and growth that continues to this day.

Joseph Smith said, “No man can receive the Holy Ghost without receiving revelations. The Holy Ghost is a revelator.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 328; see also “Chapter 10: Prayer and Personal Revelation,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, (2007),125–34)

The Prophet made that statement long after his own struggles with inspiration. In fact, no talk on recognizing revelation is complete without a discussion of the translation of the Book of Mormon.

Behold, you have not understood...

I would like to paint you a picture of those early days. Do you remember when Moroni first appeared to Joseph Smith?

It was the night of 21 September 1823 – He saw the plates for the first time on the 22^nd.

He saw them again on the 22^nd of September 1824, 1825, and 1826

Four months later he married Emma Hale on the 18^th January 1827

He got the plates eight months after that, on the 22^nd of September 1827

No sooner did he get the plates than people wanted to steal them. So he moved back to his in-laws' house. Here I include a wonderful account by President George Q. Cannon:

“Joseph had leisure and safety, after establishing himself at the house of Isaac Hale, in Harmony, Susquehanna County, State of Pennsylvania, in the month of December, 1827, to examine the sacred history and treasure which had been committed to his [keeping]. And he very soon began a ... labor of copying [randomly] the different styles of strange characters found upon the plates and translating some of them by the aid of the Urim and Thummim. He thus prepared a considerable number of characters on sheets; some of them being accompanied by translations and others being alone. It does not appear that he had any more definite object in this superficial work than to seek, half-blindly, to fulfill the command delivered by the lips of Moroni, the angel of the record. But the purpose, wisely ordained, was later apparent.” (George Q. Cannon, The Life of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, p.51)

The subsequent discussion is about the visit to Professor Charles Anthon. Now this information is found in Joseph Smith – History v.62-63 in a shorter form, but what I wanted to focus on is what the Prophet was doing when Martin Harris showed up at his door in February of 1828.

There were pieces of paper with characters everywhere. Imagine if the Prophet were doing this work today there would have been yellow sticky notes all over the place.

Let's move forward. Later in the Spring of that same year, 1828, Martin Harris made arrangements to come again and be a scribe. They translated 116 pages. And Martin lost them. Then Emma miscarried and Joseph took care of her. When he contacted Martin again and found out the pages were lost then his translation gift was taken away. It was all the way to the Spring of 1829 before Oliver Cowdery showed up. When he got there the plates had been returned to Joseph, the 116 pages were gone and who knows what happened to the “sticky notes”. But Oliver started to write and asked if he could also translate. By the time when Oliver came upon the scene Joseph had already spent months studying the characters and their meaning and more months in actual translation.

When Oliver failed to translate the Book of Mormon the Lord gave this explanation:

7 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.

8 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 will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

9 But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me.

(Doctrine and Covenants 9:7-9)

Now it wasn't Oliver's fault that he hadn't seen the process that Joseph had gone through. But we are the beneficiaries of the Lord's teaching moment with him.

This is the most important guideline we have and yet we often fail to see the lesson. At what point does the influence of the Spirit begin? Is it after we have studied and then ask if it be right? No. The Spirit influences our decision making in a way that is so subtle that the Lord allows us a confirmation. As we study things out and cast aside our own feelings and desires the power of the Holy Ghost nudges us in the right direction. And this is so subtle that we call it a still small voice.

Cooling Breezes

I had an opportunity to be in a meeting where President Spencer W. Kimball, then President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was the visiting authority. He told of an experience of pondering for understanding which lead to a very special insight. He was reading in the third chapter of the Gospel of John where Nicodemus comes to the Savior by night. Nicodemus is thinking literally and can't grasp what the Lord means by being born again. In verse 8 the Lord says:

8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

(John 3:8)

President Kimball said that he had never understood the meaning of this scripture until that particular day as he sat pondering. But he said, “Imagine sitting on a park bench on a nice sunny day. And you feel a cooling breeze across your face. You don't see any evidence of the little puff of wind in the leaves of the nearby trees. But you know that you are cooled and refreshed by something that is unseen. That is what it is like when someone who is born again receives inspiration. He or she is the only one who feels its cooling effects.”

Personal Revelation is Personal

Most of the time the messages that come in these small breezes are meant just for us. First and foremost personal revelations are personal. Only rarely should such things be shared. And we might want to ask advice from someone who is in authority over us to see if it would be appropriate to share a particular experience.

The Lord advised us to not cast our pearls before swine. This is because the swine wouldn't appreciate it. And also because they might ruin our pearls for us. One of the problems is trying to figure out who is a swine and who is not. In any given situation, no matter how righteous we are, we might all be swine when it comes to someone else's pearls.

Incorrect Answers

One of the things in this life that can really throw us for a loop is incorrectly interpreting the will of the Lord when we thought we had gone through the process to the best of our ability.

The reason we get into this situation is because the voice we are listening for is still and small. And this voice is very much like our own thoughts.

There is an order to revelation. We do not get revelation for those in authority over us. We do not get revelation for our siblings. Or our neighbors. A good guideline is the phrase: “inspiration comes from above not from the side.” We should expect revelations for ourselves and our Church and family responsibilities.

We should make sure that our answer, the one we have studied out, is a reasonable one. The Lord will not ask us to do something that doesn't fit with currently revealed truth.

One problem is that when we want something badly enough we can convince ourselves that our own idea came from the Lord.

This is why we have the previously mentioned method of confirmation of the revelation based on the Lord's teaching moment with Oliver Cowdery.

A wonderful elaboration on this method was given by Elder Richard G. Scott in April Conference of 2007. His talk is called “Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer.” In it he says:

“Some misunderstandings about prayer can be clarified by realizing that the scriptures define principles for effective prayer, but they do not assure when a response will be given. Actually, He will reply in one of three ways. First, you can feel the peace, comfort, and assurance that confirm that your decision is right. Or second, you can sense that unsettled feeling, the stupor of thought, indicating that your choice is wrong. Or third—and this is the difficult one—you can feel no response.

“What do you do when you have prepared carefully, have prayed fervently, waited a reasonable time for a response, and still do not feel an answer? You may want to express thanks when that occurs, for it is an evidence of His trust. When you are living worthily and your choice is consistent with the Savior's teachings and you need to act, proceed with trust. As you are sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit, one of two things will certainly occur at the appropriate time: either the stupor of thought will come, indicating an improper choice, or the peace or the burning in the bosom will be felt, confirming that your choice was correct. When you are living righteously and are acting with trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision.”

You will notice that Elder Scott leaves the door open to the possibility that we will have to make our own choice and be disappointed later when the answer comes. We need to be willing to submit to whatever teaching process that our Heavenly Father knows is for our good.

Practice

If it is so easy to get confused about the true source of our inspiration how do the leaders of the Church get good answers? I think that the explanation is two-fold:

1. Our leaders are people who take their responsibilities from the Lord to serve us very seriously, and they are careful to do and say only what the Lord wants.

2. It is easier to get inspiration about people that we are called to serve than for ourselves.

We get used to the voice of the Lord by hearing it regularly. We should pray morning and night. We should study the scriptures for at least 10 minutes every day.

And the best way to be sure it is HIS voice is by our focusing on serving others.

We should pray about those we are assigned to visit. We should pray about our families. We should pray about our work. As we wait for answers for these things outside ourselves, we practice listening for the still, small voice of the Spirit.

To know the voice of the Lord we must know Him. In Mosiah 5:13, King Benjamin says:

13 For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?

If we serve the Lord and come to know Him we will know His voice. Then it is easier to know when it is an answer from Him, whether we are prompted to help someone else or for our own situation.

As we learn to recognize his voice, the Holy Ghost will whisper things for us to do or say. The more in tune we are and the more quickly we act on these whisperings the easier it is to see the hand of the Lord in all things. Joseph Smith taught:

“A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon; (i.e.) those things that were presented unto your minds by the Spirit of God, will come to pass; and thus by learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation, until you become perfect in Christ Jesus.” (Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.151; see also “Chapter 10: Prayer and Personal Revelation,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, (2007),125–34)

Revelation all of the time

I would like to take a moment to talk about living in the Spirit, having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.

When my wife and I were newly married we had struggles as all couples do. During this time a new Bishop was called. He was someone who had just moved into the ward, and no one knew him. And because he didn't know us we asked for some time to talk to him. He interviewed my wife first, then he interviewed me. One of the telling questions that he asked me was, “When was the last time you had personal revelation?” I admitted that it had been a while. But the way he asked the question had an implicit statement, “You should be having personal revelation on a regular basis.” From that time on, a goal, a seed had been planted.

The Bishop then interviewed us together and said nothing of the problems that we had mentioned to him. Instead he told us to pray together, to thank the Lord for each other, and to study the scriptures together. He said that 90 percent of those who did those things never came back to his office because they solved their own problems. What he knew is that when a couple comes together and prays with one voice for guidance they become of one mind and one heart and their differences tend to melt away.

Conclusion

General Conference starts on Saturday, April 3^rd this year. And you will hear the same old boring stuff or you will hear messages just for you, depending on what you bring with you to the meeting.

Every talk will be geared toward teaching us to pray, to study the scriptures, to serve one another, . . . to believe in the Savior, who gives us hope that we can be more than we are.

Every one of the things that we will be taught is intended to reach someone and convince him or her to get back to the basics. These basics will bring us closer to God and there is nothing else that matters. In Doctrine and Covenants, Section 88 verses 63, 67-68 the Lord says:

63 Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

67 And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things.

68 Therefore, sanctify yourselves that your minds become single to God, and the days will come that you shall see him; for he will unveil his face unto you, and it shall be in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will.

Notice the word "become" implies a process.

That is why the message doesn't seem to change. Because there is nothing more important to hear. Even if you have been blessed with membership in the Church for forty years it is the same as if you were baptized just yesterday.

I testify that these things are true.

May the Lord bless us to hear His voice and receive the answers that we need, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen