A scripture that stood out to me this week in my personal study was Proverbs 3:5-6.
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
With the admonition to trust in Him, the Lord gives a wonderful promise: He will direct our paths. It seems like a reasonable thing to do - why wouldn't we trust someone who we know has the big picture, someone who can see the end from the beginning? Leaning not unto our own understanding is definitely easier said than done, however. It takes a lot of faith and humility to accept that often we don't know what is best for ourselves - but our Heavenly Father does.
This semester, I feel like the Lord has been teaching me over and over again to trust Him. The common theme across my weekly posts and personal journals seems to have been, "Trust in God. He is so much smarter than we are! He knows what is best for each of His children." I'm sure it's a lesson I will continue to learn my whole life long, but I've seen a lot of personal progress over the past few months. My testimony has been strengthened as I've applied this principle in my life, and I know that my Heavenly Father knows me personally and will always guide me towards choices that will make me happy.
Through my efforts to more fully trust in the Lord, I've also learned that He trusts me. Trusting God usually doesn't mean praying for guidance, receiving step-by-step instructions, and following them perfectly, knowing that since the instructions came from God they have to be right. Far more often I find that my prayers for guidance are answered with an assurance that if I continue in the right way, the way will become clear. As much as I sometimes wish that the way were already clear, this pattern has allowed the Lord to teach me patience and trust. The Lord trusts me to apply the principles of the gospel He's already taught me and make wise decisions, and I trust Him to bless me with peace if my decision is in line with His will and to stop me if it isn't.
I love Sister Cordon's remarks from the General Women's Session of conference on this scripture in her talk "Trust in the Lord and Lean Not." She says, "Jesus Christ has overcome the world. And because of Him, because of His infinite Atonement, we all have great cause to trust, knowing that ultimately all will be well." It can be immensely difficult to trust that ultimately all will be well in moments when all seems very much not well. Nevertheless, we know that "all things work together for good to them that love God" (Romans 8:28). Even when everything seems uncertain, if we will trust God, He will give us the guidance we need - line upon line, day by day, as much as we need until the path once again becomes clear.
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
Monday, April 3, 2017
By the Voice of My Servants
In light of General Conference, a scripture that felt particularly relevant this week was Doctrine and Covenants 1:38.
“What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.”
I just love this scripture because I love knowing that we can hear the voice of the Lord through His servants. We know that God is not silent, but that He speaks to us today through those whom He has called. To me, this is one of the most reassuring truths of the Restoration.
Sometimes, I might feel like I need or want some sort of heavenly messenger or a voice from heaven to tell me what to do. Sometimes God does speak to us that way, but we are definitely more likely to hear from Him through His servants the prophets, including through scripture. While it may not feel as direct or as profound, hearing the voice of the Lord’s inspired servants is just as good as hearing His own voice. Often, when I am seeking answers, the Lord lets me know that I need to use the resources He has already given me and search the words of the prophets. Everything that He needs me to know has been revealed and is available to me, and through His Spirit, He lets me know how to apply the words given generally to all of His children in my personal life.
That is part of why I love General Conference so much. While it is very general, out of necessity - the audience is literally the whole world - it can be very personal too. Before General Conference, I pray that the words that the speakers have prepared will speak to my heart and that I will be able to find personal meaning and answers to my questions in their messages. Often I feel that the messages of certain speakers have been prepared specifically for me. It is a great reminder to me that the Lord knows us very personally. He knows what we need to hear, and He inspires the men and women whom He has called to share what He would say to us, were He in our presence now. Whether by His own voice or by the voice of His servants, it really is the same.
“What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.”
I just love this scripture because I love knowing that we can hear the voice of the Lord through His servants. We know that God is not silent, but that He speaks to us today through those whom He has called. To me, this is one of the most reassuring truths of the Restoration.
Sometimes, I might feel like I need or want some sort of heavenly messenger or a voice from heaven to tell me what to do. Sometimes God does speak to us that way, but we are definitely more likely to hear from Him through His servants the prophets, including through scripture. While it may not feel as direct or as profound, hearing the voice of the Lord’s inspired servants is just as good as hearing His own voice. Often, when I am seeking answers, the Lord lets me know that I need to use the resources He has already given me and search the words of the prophets. Everything that He needs me to know has been revealed and is available to me, and through His Spirit, He lets me know how to apply the words given generally to all of His children in my personal life.
That is part of why I love General Conference so much. While it is very general, out of necessity - the audience is literally the whole world - it can be very personal too. Before General Conference, I pray that the words that the speakers have prepared will speak to my heart and that I will be able to find personal meaning and answers to my questions in their messages. Often I feel that the messages of certain speakers have been prepared specifically for me. It is a great reminder to me that the Lord knows us very personally. He knows what we need to hear, and He inspires the men and women whom He has called to share what He would say to us, were He in our presence now. Whether by His own voice or by the voice of His servants, it really is the same.
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