Book of Mormon: Day 135: Seek to obtain my word

Today’s reading:  Mosiah 12:20-13:6

21 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of [her] that bringeth good tidings; that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good; that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth;

As a young newlywed almost 20 years ago, I was assigned to visit teach another young woman who wasn’t a member, but attended church with her husband and was open to a monthly gospel-focused visit.  In time, this amazing person became a good friend and as our friendship deepened, so did her questions and concerns about certain doctrines of the gospel.

I remember feeling overwhelmed and even intimidated by her concerns.  They were legitimate and although I was a lifelong member, I realized that I didn’t have a good grasp on those principles myself.  I was facing a situation that I had been in before and would face again as a member missionary–that of not having the confidence to teach and to testify.

What I did have was my own powerful and personal witness about the Church, Joseph Smith, and the Book of Mormon.  Those deeply embedded truths had allowed me to very easily accept the doctrines of the gospel and the policies of the Church without question or concern as I was growing up.  But what I was starting to realize was that I needed to balance both those comforting impressions from the Spirit along with cultivating the tangible skills to seek knowledge and understanding of these principles more deeply, not only for my friend’s sake, but for my own as well.

My increasing discomfort motivated me to pray about this situation one night.  I opened my scriptures with the intent that wherever I landed, there would be my answer.  And of course the Spirit didn’t let me down!  There it was in D&C 11:21-22:

21.  Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men.

22.   But now hold your peace; study my word which hath gone forth among the children of men, and also study my word which shall come forth among the children of men,

Those words felt like they were literally floating on the page.  There was my answer!  Instead of focusing on how inadequate I felt since I hadn’t served a full-time mission, my energy would be best spent studying His word.   It was everywhere–in scriptures, books, talks, Church magazines–and was just waiting for me to give it my wholehearted attention.

In order to stand upon a mountain top, as Isaiah proclaimed in that beautiful imagery, declaring the good tidings of the gospel and proclaiming the gift of Christ’s peace and hope,  I needed to “learn it, live it, and then share it,” as taught by our current General Young Women Presidency [i].

Over time, as I’ve followed this counsel, I’ve been better able to be that confident declarer of the word.  It didn’t come overnight, but the ability has definitely come.  I’ve been better able to find the right words at the right time.   Difficult conversations no longer scare me.  All this because I first took the time to study gospel truth and then live it, so that I could then better share it.  

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