Asking Big Questions
The closest scriptural parallel we have to modern-day general conference is found in the Book of Mosiah. People who gathered to hear the words of King Benjamin “pitched their tents round about the temple, every man having his tent with the door thereof towards the temple, that thereby they might remain in their tents and hear the words which King Benjamin should speak unto them” (Mosiah 2:6). Each April and October, we do our best impersonation by remaining in our pajamas with our attention fixed on the television screen. All kidding aside, this multi-day sermon recorded in the Book of Mormon was a pivotal moment in the lives of everyone in attendance. What can we do to make general conference a pivotal moment in our lives? Here are three ideas:
- Actively participate in spiritual CPR.
- Prepare questions ahead of time.
- Wait patiently for direction, and answers will come.
Actively Participate in Spiritual CPR
Receiving revelation requires putting ourselves in situations where the whisperings of the Holy Ghost can be heard. To teach this concept, missionaries often use the acronym spiritual CPR, which stands for “church,” “pray,” and “read.” Preach My Gospel says, “Having the guidance of the Holy Ghost in your life requires spiritual work. This work includes fervent prayer and consistent scripture study. . . . It includes worthily partaking of the sacrament each week.”[1]
Wilford Woodruff taught the importance of these habits, saying, “People apostatize because they don’t keep the commandments of God; they don’t study the scriptures.”[2] When we make Heavenly Father a priority in our daily lives, we show him that we can be trusted with further direction.
People apostatize because they don’t keep the commandments of God; they don’t study the scriptures.
Prepare Questions Ahead of Time
Recognizing revelation when it comes is a skill that takes a lifetime to develop. Thanks to Wilford Woodruff’s recordkeeping, we know Joseph Smith taught that we should seek to “obtain the Holy Spirit, get acquainted with it and its operations, and listen to the whisperings of that Spirit and obey its voice, and it soon will become a principle of revelation unto us.”[3]
As we strive to become more acquainted with how the Spirit speaks to us, it can be helpful to have questions for which we earnestly seek answers. The Savior taught us to ask, seek, and knock with faith. He promised that answers from a loving Heavenly Father would come (see Matthew 7:7–11).
General conference is a great place to find answers to doctrinal questions such as “Why is the covenant path so important?” or “What does true repentance look like?” Sincerely asking more personal questions such as “Does the Lord want me to serve a mission?” or “How can I find the strength to forgive someone who has hurt me?” will also lead to answers.
Wait Patiently for Direction, and Answers Will Come
As we earnestly wait for our questions to be answered, we must not fall into the trap of restricting God with a timeline, for “all is as one day with God, and time only is measured unto men” (Alma 40:8). Elder D. Todd Christofferson echoed this warning, saying, “We ought not to think of God’s plan as a cosmic vending machine.”[4] Our faith is tested and strengthened when we ask questions and even more so when we wait patiently for the answers.
To instill some hope, let me share an experience I had receiving an answer to a question during general conference. As a new missionary serving in Ukiah, California, I was having a hard time feeling genuine love for the people we found and taught. When the October 2021 general conference was approaching, I wrote in my study journal, “How can I feel the Savior’s love for these people?” Elder Holland addressed my question directly during the first session as he taught about the importance of the two great commandments. He quoted Teilhard de Chardin in saying that when people finally understand the love God has for them and the rest of His children, “for [the] second time in the history of the world, man will have discovered fire.”[5] I felt the Spirit burn inside me, knowing God was acutely aware of my concern.
This experience didn’t change my attitude overnight toward the people I served, but it gave me the motivation I needed to work at it. President James E. Faust (1920–2007) taught, “God gives us messages of instruction or encouragement to enable us to do His will. Often this is to prepare us for a specific task.”[6] The revelation you receive at general conference will likely come as a call to action.
Conclusion
The best way to prepare to receive revelation during the general conference is to focus on what we have control over. Striving for personal righteousness through spiritual CPR, bringing questions, and waiting for direction with faith are all great ways to be more prepared.
The success of these preparatory steps depends on your willingness to apply them. How fertile will you make your ground for general conference?
- “What Should I Do If I Think I’ve Received Revelation Different from Apostles and Prophets?”
- Understand how the spirit works and seek something unique to you and recognizable.
- In order to continue to know with greater assurance that something is true, we should continue to endure in faith. We’re promised blessings for doing so.
- Ultimately, it is a choice to believe in the reality of the spirit, understand the epistemology, work to be worthy to feel the spirit’s influences, and follow those influences courageously
- Personal revelation can differ between two people
- Question: Will our manifestation of truth from the Holy Ghost be a “spectacular” witness?
- Question: Why might someone not be able to see their spiritual impressions come to successful, obvious, and/or beautiful fruition?
- Question: Can spiritual experiences be simply willed to reality?
- Question: Can one simply decide when one feels and doesn’t feel the Spirit?
Scott Hansen is an intern with the content team for the Wilford Woodruff papers. Currently studying as a pre-med student at BYU, he loves being active and spending time with friends and family. Scott has always had an appreciation for Church history. Spending time in the Wilford Woodruff Papers has strengthened his testimony and helped bring the Restoration to life.
Endnotes
[1] “Seek and Rely on the Spirit,” chap. 4 in Preach My Gospel: A Guide to Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
[2] Discourse by Wilford Woodruff, September 10, 1870, p. 1, The Wilford Woodruff Papers Project, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/discourse/1870-09-10. Punctuation standardized.
[3] Wilford Woodruff’s 1882 Autobiography, Leaves from My Journal, p. 99, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/leaves-from-my-journal.
[4] D. Todd Christofferson, “Our Relationship with God,” April 2022 general conference, ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
[5] Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Greatest Possession,” October 2021 general conference, ChurchofJesusChrist.org. Elder Holland quoted Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Toward the Future (1975), p. 87.
[6] James E. Faust, “Did You Get the Right Message?,” April 2004 general conference, ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
The Wilford Woodruff Papers Foundation’s mission is to digitally preserve and publish Wilford Woodruff’s eyewitness account of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ from 1833 to 1898. It seeks to make Wilford Woodruff’s records universally accessible to inspire all people, especially the rising generation, to study and to increase their faith in Jesus Christ. For more information, visit wilfordwoodruffpapers.org.
