Sunday, November 12, 2017

Personal Revelation

Rich and I have recently moved to Clovis, California from the East. We lived in the suburbs of Washington DC for over forty years. It’s been a big move but Clovis already feels like home. We are Mormons and are part of the Dry Creek Ward. (Our congregation). I was ask to speak in our Sacrament Meeting recently on personal revelation. This is my talk which includes many events which were very personal about times I cannot deny the influence and divine direction of the Holy Spirit in my life. 


Sacrament Meeting Talk
October 22, 2017

I love the gospel of Jesus Christ and know what a great privilege it is to enjoy the benefits of the gospel. I know  personal revelation and I know we are all eligible to access that divine power.  Personal Revelation is just that  - personal.  Very personal.  What you receive is yours alone.  No one can take it away from you. 

When Elder Neil l Anderson invited us to maximize our viewing of General Conference, a few weeks ago, he said reverence invites revelation and challenged us to revently listen for guiding revelation. 
I think it’s interesting that the word reverence and the word revelation begin with the same four letters.  They have the same Latin root.  Yes, so there is a connection. 

Think of times you have felt the most reverent. Or times when you knew you were receiving divine direction and answers. Those times are personal and sacred. 

Questions to ask yourself. 

1.  Do you have to be reverent to receive the gentle feelings of the spirit?
2. What frame of mind do you have to be in to receive a revelation? 
3.  How do you ask the Lord for divine answers?

In contrast most of us have times in our life when we drive the spirit away.  We build up walls and emotional defenses around our hearts — and sometimes those walls keep us from feeling the embrace of the spirit.  

  I can think of a time in my life when I had hardened my heart to positive reverent feelings. 

My little sister, Julie,  died when when she was in her 40s.  I was feeling heartbroken and wronged because she and her husband had two baby boys who were then 6 and 8 and now these  little guys had lost their mother. It was such a huge loss and it didn’t seem fair to me.   They had worked so hard to have a little family.  I know my testimony must have been fragile and weak and I felt desperately sad about my sister.   I have lots of brothers, (not that I could spare any of them) but I have only one sister.  My feelings went from sad to bitter.  I was so unhappy that her life couldn’t have been spared.  And so, I couldn’t bring myself to go the temple for a couple of months because of those feelings.  

Then our son, Jeremy, who was in law school in Michigan came for a visit.   He hadn’t been through the Washington  DC Temple since he left for his mission and wanted to go.  Because he asked, I of course agreed, but I didn’t feel very good about going.  When I got to the bridge at the temple I sat down and tried to gather up some reverent feelings and  I kept a prayer in my heart as I proceeded.  I really felt like my feelings were being tossed to and fro.  When I picked up the name for the person I would be going through the temple for,  I had to sit back down.  Sometimes when you pick up a proxy name from earlier centuries  there will only be a partial name.  And this was the case. There was only a first name.  I stared at the slip of paper a long time. The name on the slip of paper was “Julie”.   My sister’s name. 

It was a profound instant of personal revelation for me,  I was completely overcome and started crying. I knew I had been given a wonderful gift and message of the spirit that day.  And   I knew then that Julie was where she needed to be.  My bitter feelings were gone. 

This experience was beyond my own breadth of revelation.  

So What did I learn about personal revelation?   Many things. 

1.  The first thing I learned was that my Heavenly Father loves me and often blesses me even when I don’t deserve it.
2. The second thing I learned was about proper   prayer. 

I had offered many prayers but my bitterness was blocking anything the spirit could offer me.  I wasn’t  reverent. 

3. I also learned I had to pray with great faith and reverent feelings knowing that the Lord knows what is best.

Elder Richard G Scott said The Holy Ghost communicates important information that we need to guide us. 
And
One of the great lessons that each of us needs to learn is to ask. Why does the Lord want us to pray to Him and to ask? Because that is how revelation is received.

4.    I also learned that I needed to listen properly. 

The Holy Ghost will show us everything we should do, [so] (but we still have choices) so it only makes sense to learn how He communicates—or to learn the language of revelation. Our challenge is not getting the Lord to speak to us; our challenge is understanding what He has to say.5” We have to be ready to hear.
One morning I had a huge fight with my oldest son as he was leaving for school.  He was in the 5th grade and already taller and bigger than I was.   And It was a battle.   Instantly I knew I couldn’t let that boy of mine head off to school so angry and upset.  What kind of a day would he have??  I ask for immediate help from Heavenly Father.  My answer came quickly.   PRAY with your son.
I said to Matthew, “We need to pray.”  
Of course he angrily said,  “No.”
I tackled him onto the couch with him fighting me all the way and started praying.  Soon his body softened and I finished the prayer.  Then we stood and hugged.  He said, “ I’m sorry Mom. I love you.”  I also said I was sorry and expressed my love. He picked up his backpack and walked to the door.  When he got to the door he turned back to me and said “Mom.”
and I said, “Yes”. 
He said, “I’m still right. “  I just smiled. 
 That was an occasion when I needed immediate help and I listened and it worked.  My boy went to school with all of the anger gone. 
5.  Another suggestion from Elder Scott 
Was to remember To turn to the scriptures for examples. 

He said:
The scriptures give eloquent confirmation of how truth, consistently lived, opens the door to inspiration to know what to do and, where needed, to have personal capacities enhanced by divine power. The scriptures depict how an individual’s capacity to conquer difficulty, doubt, and seemingly insurmountable challenges is strengthened by the Lord in time of need. 
(Remember Elder Scott was a true brilliant rocket scientist who became an apostle. . So I will read this paragraph again.   Slowly)
And he said
As you ponder such examples from the scriptures, there will come a quiet confirmation through the Holy Spirit that their experiences are true. You will come to know that similar help is available to you. 

And remember in Mosiah when king Benjamin is talking with his three sons.  And tells them because of the Records  the people will not have to - suffer in ignorance  -  but can know the mysteries of God. 

And that’s exactly what we do when we try life on our own without prayer,  without scriptures to inspire us. We Suffer in ignorance and then wonder why we make poor decisions. 



Ten years ago we  retired further out of the Washington DC area to a small Revolutionary/Civil War town near the Blue Ridge Mountains.   This was to be our last house we thought.  Then circumstances became such that we knew we needed to move.  We started praying for inspiration and even considered California.  But that would have been such a big move clear across the country.  It felt like way too much. We felt so uncertain.  We continued to look for housing in the suburbs of Washington.  And praying. 
We also looked at housing in California in the fall and then again in April. Still very uncertain.   Then President Witt stopped by our son’s home and we were visiting about our possibilities.  He made a couple of statements that really answered some questions I had been pondering and I knew what we were to do. 
We went home and prepared to sell our home.  I kept thinking if ever I needed a divine intervention for events to fall into place, this was the moment.  I knew we needed to put ourselves in he Lord’s hands. We moved forward and put our home on the market.  It sold the first day.  Only one person came through our house and they bought it. Now we were homeless.  
I hurried back to California to look at properties and ended up putting a down payment on a lot over on Peach and Teague.  I then flew back home and started packing up our home.  Again things started feeling wrong.  We looked one more time in Northern Virginia — our home of over 40 years.  Nothing felt right. Still everything felt wrong.  Then we decided to put an offer on the home we are now in — still feeling uncertain.  Not knowing the area and suddenly everything seemed overwhelming.  Now we were going to have two homes in California.  Yes, I felt a little crazy.  I asked Pres Witt if we could still attend Mtn View Ward. He said, “You will love Dry Creek Ward.” So that was a “wise”no. 
I asked our son, Jeremy to go to the home inspection on the house and to see of President Witt would accompany him to the home inspection and he agreed.  I knew we could still get out of the contract if we needed to. Then I received the phone call.  Jeremy called me from the inspection and said, “When we drove into your new neighborhood, President Witt said, ‘well, Jeremy, your parents have bought a home that is surrounded by other Mormon families.  Great Mormon families. The Loveland’s live across the street, the Stouts live down the street, the Parkers live around the corner and the Pittman’s live around the other corner.’
 We had no idea. 
 During that phone call I had the most peaceful affirming feeling come over me.  And here we are.  We wouldn’t be here today if President Witt had not been involved  showing  me the Lord had already answered our prayers.  I could cry when I think about what a blessing he has been for us. 
It felt like divine direction because it was.  
Thank you, Pres Witt!
Elder Scott adds 

If you feel that God has not answered your prayers, ponder these scriptures—then carefully look for evidence in your own life that He may have already answered you 
or in my case may be trying to. 
Like many of us, Oliver Cowdery did not recognize the evidence of answers to prayers already given by the Lord. To open his and our eyes, this revelation was given through Joseph Smith:
“Blessed art thou for what thou hast done; for thou hast inquired of me, and behold, as often as thou hast inquired thou hast received instruction of my Spirit. If it had not been so, thou wouldst not have come to the place where thou art at this time.
“Behold, thou knowest that thou hast inquired of me and I did enlighten thy mind; and now I tell thee these things that thou mayest know that thou hast been enlightened by the Spirit of truth.”4
You wouldn’t be where you are if I hadn’t already answered your prayers.  I finally got it. 

I love the story of Ebenezer in 1st Samuel in the Old Testament. 
What does Ebenezer mean? “Stone of help” or “Hitherto the Lord had helped us” 
One of the most catastrophic military losses in Israel’s history occurs when the Philistines capture the ark of the covenant at Ebenezer. 

 About twenty years later (and after retrieving the ark), the Israelites engage the Philistines in another significant battle, only this time it is they who prevail. Unlike the first battle, in which the nation acts without consulting The Lord, they choose to rely on divine intervention and are rewarded with an improbable if not miraculous victory.  This is a significant triumph as it marks the first time in the nation’s history that they defeat the Philistines.

Samuel, Israel’s last judge, first prophet and de facto leader, commemorates the occasion by erecting a monument which he names: “Ebenezer” Remember what it means. Hitherto the Lord has helped us. 
     

I'm telling you this story because I want you to apply it to your own life. We learn two things. 

To
   1.  Rely on the Lord
   2.  Remember when the Lord has helped us.  

     I believe it is important to build our own symbolic Ebenezer. Your own monument. Build it. 

When has the Lord helped you do something? Our church leaders have encouraged us to memorialize these experiences.  Make your list. 

My sister has been gone now for 17 years.  She taught me well.  I have learned in my life that if I’m going to fall, I want to fall down on my faith, on my knees in prayer to ask for divine direction from a loving Heavenly Father.  He always answers. I just have to remember how to listen. 
I’m grateful for personal prayer, for divine examples from the scriptures and for unconditional love from the Savior.  
Remember the lyrics from 
Come Thou Fount 
A wonderful hymn that we have all come to love due to Mac Wilberg’s arrangement. I first remember hearing it when our son was singing with the BYU men’s chorus and Mac was their  leader. He now leads the Mormon Tabernacle choir.The second verse references the Ebenezer. 
“Here I raise my Ebenezer
Here there by Thy great help I've come.”
Remember your own Ebenezer. When you get to be my age you may not remember so build your record. And acknowledge the Giver. 
One of the last lines of the 2nd verse says:
“Here’s my heart oh take and seal it.”

I’m grateful to a loving Heavenly Father who sacrificed his son. I will strive to always give my heart to the Savior who has blessed my life so greatly with the sacred privilege of personal revelation. 

Quotes from Elder Richard G Scott, April General Conference

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