Last April during General Conference, Finding Strength in Challenging Times, by Elder Allan F. Packer stood out to me. During which he said, “Having the capacity to receive personal inspiration will be necessary in the coming days.” The urgent call to receive personal revelation worried me, because I wasn’t sure I knew how. This talk is an actual step by step guide on how to do it, and I’m learning.
In one of the most beautiful chapters in the Book of Mormon, Nephi says, “O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm. Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen.” (2 Nephi 4:34-35)
If we will not take it upon ourselves to obtain personal revelation, we do it to our own demise. Obtaining knowledge through personal revelation is the rock upon which our testimony needs to be built. Building a testimony that rests only on the words and actions of man, albeit a righteous prophet even, is putting you trust in the “arm of flesh.” Our testimonies sit on a sandy foundation if that is what we are doing.
“When the winds blow and the rains pour, they blow and pour on all. Those who have built their foundations on bedrock rather than sand survive the storms. There is a way to build on bedrock by developing a deep personal conversion to the gospel of Jesus Christ and knowing how to receive inspiration. We must know—and know that we know. We must stand spiritually and temporally independent of all worldly creatures. This begins by understanding that God the Father is the Father of our spirits and that He loves us, that Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and Savior, and that the Holy Ghost can communicate with our minds and our hearts. This is how we receive inspiration. We need to learn how to recognize and apply these promptings."
Elder Dallin H. Oaks defined a testimony this way: “A testimony of the gospel is a personal witness borne to our souls by the Holy Ghost that certain facts of eternal significance are true and that we know them to be true.”
This is something each person must experience for himself.
"'This witness is not limited to the leaders but is available to all men, women, youth, and even little children. Having the capacity to receive personal inspiration will be necessary in the coming days." - Elder Allan F. Packer
