One of the beautiful blessings of Coming Unto Jesus Christ is our opportunity to have a personal relationship with Him and with our Heavenly Father. Asking our soul searching questions through prayer and receiving our answers is one of His greatest gifts as we travel down life's often challenging and painful road. Here is a presentation I did for our Stake Relief Society's Women's Conference this last spring. It is filled with truth from the perspective of a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which I am, but I believe that the truths taught are universal. May the blessings of Personal Revelation come to us all as we continue to strive to be more like Our Savior and Come Unto Him.
- Christy
For more great presentations on Coming Unto Jesus Christ and growing in our love and devotion for him click on the links below:
Here is the link to our Spring Relief Society Conference 2012
Here is the link to our main Arlington Stake Relief Society blog
Here is the link to our Spring Relief Society Conference 2011
Here is the link to our Stake Relief Society Fall Meeting 2012 with thoughts about cooking healthy from food storage and spiritual reasons why taking care of our bodies are so important
Now for my presentation on Personal Revelation:
Flowing From the Fountain
Above
A Presentation on Personal
Revelation by Christy
Quotes:
“I would like to speak about receiving
personal revelation, how each individual member of the Church can come to know
of the divinity of the work, can have the whisperings of the Spirit in his heart
and soul, and in addition, can see visions, speak with angels, behold the face
of the Lord, and receive all the knowledge and wisdom that has been poured out
upon faithful people in any age.
“Reading the experiences of others,
or the revelation given to them, can never give us a comprehensive view
of our condition and true relation to God. Knowledge of these things can only be
obtained by experiences through the ordinances of God set forth for that
purpose. Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you
would by reading all that ever was written on the
subject.”
- Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith,
Section 6, Subheading 59, paragraph 1, p. 324.
“Sister Eliza R. Snow taught that individual
women could receive inspiration to guide them in their personal lives, their
families, and their Church responsibilities. She said: "Tell the sisters to go
forth and discharge their duties, in humility and faithfulness and the Spirit of
God will rest upon them and they will be blest in their labors. Let them seek
for wisdom instead of power and they will have all the power they have wisdom to
exercise."
“Her inspired instruction helped Relief Society sisters face the trials of their day. She taught that if they would continually seek guidance and comfort from the Holy Ghost, they could enjoy peace even in the midst of adversity. She said that the Holy Ghost "satisfies and fills up every longing of the human heart, and fills up every vacuum. When I am filled with that Spirit, my soul is satisfied, and I can say in good earnest, that the trifling things of the day do not seem to stand in my way at all. But just let me lose my hold of that spirit and power of the Gospel, and partake of the spirit of the world, in the slightest degree, and trouble comes; there is something wrong. I am tried, and what will comfort me? You cannot impart comfort to me that will satisfy the immortal mind, but that which comes from the Fountain above. And is it not our privilege to so live that we can have this constantly flowing into our souls?"
“Her inspired instruction helped Relief Society sisters face the trials of their day. She taught that if they would continually seek guidance and comfort from the Holy Ghost, they could enjoy peace even in the midst of adversity. She said that the Holy Ghost "satisfies and fills up every longing of the human heart, and fills up every vacuum. When I am filled with that Spirit, my soul is satisfied, and I can say in good earnest, that the trifling things of the day do not seem to stand in my way at all. But just let me lose my hold of that spirit and power of the Gospel, and partake of the spirit of the world, in the slightest degree, and trouble comes; there is something wrong. I am tried, and what will comfort me? You cannot impart comfort to me that will satisfy the immortal mind, but that which comes from the Fountain above. And is it not our privilege to so live that we can have this constantly flowing into our souls?"
- Eliza R. Snow from Daughters in My Kingdom pgs. 45
& 46
“The ability to qualify for, receive, and act
on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired
in this life. … It requires a conscious effort to diminish distractions, but
having the spirit of revelation makes it possible to prevail over opposition and
persist in faith through difficult days and essential routine tasks. … When we
have done our very best, we may still experience disappointments, but we will
not be disappointed in ourselves. We can feel certain that the Lord is pleased
when we feel the Spirit working through us.”
-
Julie B. Beck from
Daughters in My Kingdom pg. 158
“If we truly want to walk away from the world,
our single most important pursuit is to seek to hear the voice of the
Spirit. I don’t think it will be possible to survive spiritually in the last
days without the Holy Ghost as our constant guide. The Spirit is the ultimate
protector and judge between good and evil. The Spirit can detect the slightest
variance from truth and alert us to all spiritual danger, because the Holy Ghost
speaks “of things as they really are” (Jacob 4:13), rather than as they
appear to be, and shows us “all things
what [we] should do”
(2 Nephi 32:5).
“There is no simple
formula for learning to hear the voice of the Spirit. But purity is key, for it
makes us a more pure receptacle. The scriptures are key, because they teach the
language of revelation. The temple is key, for there we learn how to come
out of the world and into the presence of God while in mortality. And regular
personal worship is key.”
-
Sheri Dew from Awake,
Arise and Come Unto Christ
Elder Kikuchi’s Suggestions For:
Daily
Personal Devotional
*Rise from bed early.
*Exercise for a few minutes.
*Wash your body - make yourself clean.
*Dress for the day.
*Go to a quiet place inside your home.
*Kneel, subdue your spirit before Heavenly Father, and
call upon Him. Talk with Him in reverent prayer.
*Wait for His holy inspiration, ponder the scriptures
or a recent general conference talk & think about the specific problems you
face.
Places
where revelation is the strongest:
*During our Daily Personal Devotional (see Elder Kikuchi’s suggestions for this
above)
*When at the Temple
*During the Sacrament
*During General Conference http://www.lds.org/general-conference?lang=eng
*During Stake Conference
*When doing Genealogy Work
*When testifying of Christ and His Church
*When teaching our Children
*When Fasting
Resources
on Revelation:
*Bibliography on back of handout
*General Conference Talks http://www.lds.org/general-conference?lang=eng
*Teachings of the Prophets http://www.lds.org/prophets-and-apostles?lang=eng
*LDS.org search – search Personal Revelation, Listening
to the Holy Ghost, etc… http://www.lds.org/topics?lang=eng
*Preach My Gospel – specifically chapter 4
http://www.lds.org/manual/missionary?lang=eng
*Church Magazines http://www.lds.org/magazines-and-manuals?lang=eng
http://www.lds.org/manual/missionary?lang=eng
*Church Magazines http://www.lds.org/magazines-and-manuals?lang=eng
Everyday
places I receive revelation
Out in Nature
Doing dishes, laundry, (or any other simple and
repetitive chore)
Taking a shower
Driving in the car in silence
Through someone else’s comments
While listening to peaceful, happy and/or sacred music
Listening to children
While painting
While creating
While talking with a good friend
Great Talks on Personal
Revelation
Revelation by Elder Dallin H.
Oaks
Personal Revelation by Elder L. Lionel Kendrick Of the
Seventy
Opening the Heavens by Elder Yoshihiko Kikuchi of the
Seventy
How to Get Personal Revelation by Elder Bruce R.
McConkie
How to Obtain Personal Revelation and Inspiration for
your Personal Life by Elder Richard G. Scott
Eight Reasons for Revelation by Elder Dallin H.
Oaks
Chapter 5 Wilford Woodruff The Holy Ghost and Personal
Revelation
Words of Christ – Our Spiritual Liahona by W. Rolff
Kerr of the First Quorum of the Seventy
Scripture Reading
Because We Have Them Before Our Eyes by Elder David A.
Bednar
Come Unto Me by Elder Jeffrey R.
Holland
A Time of Urgency by Elder Marvin J.
Ashton
Awake, Arise and Come Unto Christ by Sheri
Dew
Ways to Recognize the Promptings of the Spirit from
Preach My Gospel Chapter 4 pg. 96 &
97
*Gives feelings of love, joy, peace, patience,
-
D&C 6:23; 11:12–14;
*Meekness, gentleness, faith, and hope - Romans
15:13; Galatians 5:22–23
*Gives ideas in the mind, feelings in the heart
-
D&C 8:2–3
*Occupies the mind and presses on the feelings
-
D&C 128:1
* Helps scriptures have strong effect. -
Joseph Smith History 1:11–12
*Gives good feelings to teach if something is true -
D&C 9:8–9
*Enlightens the mind - Alma
*Replaces darkness with light - Alma
*Strengthens the desire to avoid evil and obey the
commandments - Mosiah 5:2–5
*Teaches truth and brings it to remembrance -
John 14:26
*Gives feelings of peace and comfort - John
14:27
*Guides to truth and shows things to come - John
16:13
*Reveals truth - Moroni
*Guides and protects from deception - D&C
45:57
*Glorifies and bears record of God the Father and
Jesus Christ - 2 Nephi 31:18; D&C 20:27; John
16:14
*Guides the words of humble teachers - D&C
42:16; 84:85; 100:5–8; Luke 12:11–12
*Recognizes and corrects sin - John
16:8
*Gives gifts of the Spirit - Moroni
*Helps to perceive or discern the thoughts of
others - Alma
*Tells what to pray for - D&C 46:30;
50:29–30
*Tells what to do - 2 Nephi 32:1–5; D&C
28:15
*Helps the righteous speak with power and
authority - 1 Nephi 10:22; Alma 18:35
*Testifies of
the truth - D&C 21:9; 100:8; John 15:26
*Sanctifies and brings remission of sins - 2
Nephi 31:17; Alma 13:12; 3 Nephi 27:20
*Carries truth to the heart of the listener - 1
Nephi 2:16–17; 2 Nephi 33:1; Alma
*Enhances skills and abilities - 1 Nephi 1:1–3;
Exodus 31:3–5
*Constrains (impels forward) or restrains - 1
Nephi 7:15; 2 Nephi 28:1; 32:7;
*(holds back) - Alma
*Edifies both teacher & students - D&C
50:13–22
*Gives comfort - D&C 88:3; John 14:26
