Getting to Know God
Filed under: Developing a Relationship With God
God isn’t just a shadowy figure who created us, made a bunch of rules and then disappeared from our lives. As the creator of our spirits, and someone who knew us before we were born, He loves us and has a deep, personal interest in how we’re doing. He wants us to know Him as well as He knows us. How do you get to know someone you don’t remember meeting in person?
In today’s age of modern technology, this might not seem as complicated as it once was. Most of us feel we know many people we’ve never met. However, in general, we get to know God the same way we get to know everyone we have a close, personal relationship with. We spend quality time together, we talk, we listen, and we try to find out as much as we can about the person. We invest a great deal of time in building our relationships with people in our earthly life we care about, and we must devote at least as much time building our relationships with God and Jesus Christ.
A good first step is to gather some factual knowledge. We have access to scriptures that teach us about God, and we can read them slowly and thoughtfully, not rushing through to meet a schedule, but pondering what they say. We can even start a journal of our thoughts as we read, or begin a notebook in which we record everything we learn about God as we read.
On the official church website, LDS.org there are many articles about both God and Jesus Christ. We can read the thoughts of church leaders and ordinary church members on God and Jesus, and learn their experiences with Them. These allow us to find ways to apply those insights to our own lives, and perhaps to better understand our relationship with God.
Of course, information isn’t enough. It creates a knowledgeable person, but it doesn’t create a personal relationship. To have a personal relationship, you must have communication. This communication comes through prayer, the way God created for us to stay in touch with Him while we’re away. Prayer is not a one-way form of communication. We can talk to God, and through the power of the Holy Ghost, He can also communicate with us, a part of the process often neglected when prayer is discussed.
Here’s a brief overview of how to pray: Begin by respectfully and lovingly addressing God. (Dear Heavenly Father, My beloved Father in Heaven, etc.) Then thank Him for everything you have received from Him. Spend some time in advance thinking this through, so you begin to develop an appreciation of the many blessings you have. Even the hardest life comes with blessings, but we have to pay attention to find them sometimes. Next, if you need something, ask for it. This can include a request to help build your relationship with God. Make sure what you’re asking for is righteous and really needed, and that it’s something you can’t give yourself, unless you’re asking Him to help you with the process of obtaining it. You can also spend time just talking to God about any subject that’s on your mind. It’s peaceful to talk to someone who really understands, and He, unlike your earthly friends, never complains you’re talking too long. Then close in the name of the Savior, Jesus Christ, and finish with the word Amen.
Now the harder part begins. Most people get to this point, and jump up, rushing off to the rest of their day. However, before you close the prayer, sit quietly for a while and just listen. How can God answer you if you don’t wait for His answer? The answer can come to you in several ways. One way, the least common, is through a voice. This is more common in extreme emergencies where the Holy Ghost knows you need to hear Him right away. Another way is for thoughts to enter your mind. The third way, and the more common way, is for you to experience peacefulness in your mind when you’ve made the right decision, and a negative feeling when you’ve made the wrong decision.
This, of course, means you can’t just run to God with a question. You need to think the problem through and try to come up with your own solution. Then you take it to God for confirmation. God is a good parent and good parents never do for their children what their children can do for themselves.
The final step to building a relationship to God is, of course, to do His will. If we’re studying and praying, but then doing anything we want, our relationship with Him is empty and meaningless. “If ye love me, keep my commandments,” Jesus told his disciples. Mormon beliefs help guide its members to a close and personal relationship with God.
Joy
Filed under: Developing a Relationship With God, Growing in Faith
What is the purpose of life? We’re here to gain a body and a family, to learn, to be tested, to develop faith, and ultimately to return to our Heavenly Father. However, the Book of Mormon also offers another interesting perspective on the purpose of our time here on earth:
Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy. (2 Nephi 2:25)
This is a very interesting thought. We are that we might have joy. Notice the scripture doesn’t say we will have joy, only that we can have it. In a life that has trials and sorrows, how do we obtain that joy God wants us to have?
It’s important to recognize that joy, happiness, and pleasure are not always the same thing. Pleasure suggests something worldly and fleeting. We might find pleasure in a walk in the park, but then go home and start arguing. Some people find momentary pleasure in sin, but this can never bring true joy.
We are often happy when things are going well in our lives. We may be happy the day our child wins an award for best student, dinner turned out perfectly, and we got a raise at work. All of this, however, is momentary and depends on things going well.
While God certainly has no objection to our happiness, what He really wants for us is to find true joy. Joy is deep inside, and is present even in sorrow and trials. We can experience joy even when someone we love has died, we’re coping with unemployment, or a child is causing us heartache.
Joy is based on knowing God is our Father and loves us with all His heart. It comes from knowing who we are—children of God—and letting that knowledge fill our lives and guide our choices. It comes from trusting God even when we see no way out of our current sadness or trial. It is the result of knowing that the trials of life are temporary and that someday we’ll live again with God in a perfect world.
A person grieving over the death of a loved one may not be happy at that moment, but she can be joyful, knowing the person has returned to Heavenly Father and is now living a wonderful life. She can be joyful because she knows family and love don’t end at death, and so there will be a time when they can be together again. She can experience all this joy in a quiet way even as the tears fall. She knows why she is sad and that it will someday end. It’s a joy based on faith.
Parents are often devastated when a child who was properly raised makes terrible choices and turns his back on the values of the family. This is a time for genuine sorrow and fear, and yet a parent, although very sad and frightened, can have a quiet joy resonating in the background because she knows she isn’t coping with this alone. God is waiting to offer her comfort and hope, and furthermore, He hasn’t abandoned her child, who is also His child. While He can’t take away the child’s God-given agency, the right to choose for himself, God can be standing by to place small promptings into the child’s heart, based on the faith of the parents. When the child is ready to listen, God will be ready to step in and help the child return to his foundations.
Joy is all about faith. When we trust God and really believe He is kind, loving, present in our lives, and ready to help, we can have a gentle joy that brings us through our greatest trials. We will still cry, still sometimes be afraid, and still experience trials, but we’ll always know we can turn to God to strengthen us as we’re going through them. Joy is all about knowing we’re never facing anything alone. We’re always in the care of a loving Heavenly Father.
God Gives Us Personal Direction
God does not just speak to the multitudes; He also speaks to us individually. In the beginning, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes referred to as Mormons) was very small, and people had a lot of direct contact with the prophet, Joseph Smith. People would frequently approach the prophet and ask him to pray to God in their behalf for specific direction they were seeking, which he often did (many examples can be found in a modern book of scripture known as the Doctrine and Covenants).
Today, with a church membership approaching 13 million members and more than half of those living outside the United States, one is fortunate to be in the same venue where the prophet is speaking, much less have a private conversation with him. But that doesn’t mean that church members cannot receive specific direction for their lives when needed. The Lord guides His children primarily in three ways:
First, He has given every baptized member of the church the Gift of the Holy Ghost. The Gift of the Holy Ghost entitles the recipient to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost provided they are living worthily. The Holy Ghost knows all things. He can guide us not only the way we should go, but also warn us against taking a path that might be dangerous.
Secondly, He has given worthy men the Priesthood, the authority to act and bless others in His name. Priesthood holders can not only bless the sick, as Christ blessed the sick, they can give blessings of comfort and direction in times of need. Typically a blessing is sought out by a close relative: a husband, father, or brother. If a relative is not able to give the blessing, families can seek out the assistance of priesthood holders in their ward (congregation). They place their hands on the head of the individual in need of a blessing and through the power of Christ utter words of divine counsel and reassurance.
In the Bible it records the blessings of fathers to their sons, to pass on the birthright, as well as give counsel and direction to those who would be responsible for protecting and maintaining the family. Today in a somewhat similar fashion, worthy members of the church may receive what is known as a Patriarchal blessing. In this blessing they receive counsel and direction regarding their individual life’s mission. They also learn through which lineage of the twelve tribes of Israel they inherit their spiritual birthright. The Lord made certain promises to Abraham which are still valid for all his righteous descendants. Through a Patriarchal blessing church members learn through which tribe of Israel they receive these promised blessings. Patriarchal blessings are administered through one ordained specially to administer them, and unlike regular priesthood blessings which may be sought at any time of need, are only given once in a person’s life.
We can receive divine revelation specific to our individual needs. As long as we are doing our best to live our lives in accordance with God’s commandments, He is eager and willing to speak directly to us through His appointed channels.
Favored by the Lord
To be loved and to give love is a wonderful gift from God. At some level or another we all search and long for that feeling called love. No matter what walk of life we come from, we all seek to fill that feeling for love.
Why is this? It is because we had that feeling in the premortal world. That renewing feeling is truly a natural inheritance of every person born on earth. Because, of this we all are searching and longing for that which embraced us before we came here to earth. This feeling isn’t new to any of us. I myself have experienced the feeling of longing for home. My spirit often misses the tender care and unconditional love of our Heavenly home.
Just as we long for this loving feeling Heavenly Father longs for us to have those loving feelings for Him. We must get to know God with our minds and feel Him in our hearts. I’m sure He must miss having our presence in heaven as much as we miss being there. Heavenly Father loves all of His children,regardless of the way we act or the attitude we have about things. But, when we obey, we are favored of Him. Obeying the Lord tells Him how much we love Him. When it comes to our relationship with the Lord, we all can be His favorite. Isn’t it great to know the Lord can have favor in us?
A good man obtaineth favour of the Lord: but a man of wicked devices will he condemn.(Proverbs 12:2)
When I sit and think about what a friend is. It is someone you have a strong connection with. You think of each other and their well being. You look out for each other more. You rejoice upon meeting one another after a brief separation. To share these qualities with the Lord is truly the greatest gift for which we could ask. Our confidence will increase and our love for Him flourishes when we work to feel His love. It simply makes our journey here on earth more enduring; the loneliness we may feel disappears.
Joseph Smith said, ”Nothing short of an actual knowledge of their being the favorites of heaven, and of their having embraced that order of things which God has established for the redemption of man, will enable [the saints] to exercise that confidence in him, necessary for them to overcome the world, and obtain that crown of glory which is laid up for them that fear God. (Joseph Smith, Lectures on Faith 6:4)
Our purpose in life should be to find God and establish a lasting connection with Him. Love is the most powerful feeling that will connect us with Him. We can have that sweet relationship with Heavenly Father even though we haven’t seen Him. Let your desire be,to be favored by the Lord.
Christ Knows Our Suffering
I was out enjoying a summer stroll with my husband one evening when my cell phone rang. It was from a friend I knew through church (I’m a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or Mormons). Her doctor’s appointment that morning had brought devastating news: the 20-week-old fetus she’d been carrying was dead. My friend was scheduled to go to the hospital later that night to deliver the body. She was calling to ask me if I would notify our local church leaders for her.
As I got off the phone my husband asked what was wrong. After I related the contents of the call, we held each other for a few moments, then hurried home to see what more we could do.
The following evening I went with another girlfriend to visit this friend who’d lost her baby. I’d bought a yellow rose with a vase and card which we both signed, but I felt completely at a loss as to what I could possibly say that would help this grieving friend.
When we got to her door, we found that there was another couple from the ward (local congregation) already visiting, and we were invited to join them. About six months previously this visiting couple had also miscarried surprisingly late into their pregnancy. I humbly sat and listened as the visiting couple counseled with confidence my friend and her husband, both of whom looked visibly relieved to be speaking with two people who knew their pain so intimately. The visiting couple’s prior experience had specially equipped them to help in this very sad, very unusual situation.
We are not always fortunate enough to have a close friend or relative who knows our particular pain. Fortunately, there is always One who knows perfectly what we are going through, because He too has personally experienced it. Many years before the Savior’s birth, an ancient American prophet Alma prophesied that Christ would “take upon him [our] infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that He may know according to the flesh how to succor His people according to [our] infirmities” (Alma 7:12). In the Garden of Gethsemane Christ suffered not only for the sins of all mankind, He also suffered every physical and emotional pain we could possibly experience. Because of what he suffered, Christ was uniquely prepared to give needed comfort to each of us during hardship. To succor means to run to the rescue, and Christ is waiting and willing to run to our side.
Whenever we are hurting we can seek the Savior’s comfort through prayer, reading scripture, or listening to sacred hymns. In quiet moments we can experience the reassurance that Christ is there and he knows what we are going through. While this knowledge will not alter our circumstances, it does give us needed relief, healing, and strength to carry on, while at the same time looking forward to a day when we can smile again.
Trusting In Him
As you read the newspaper, watch the news and go about your daily activities you often hear of betrayal and loss of trust in others. You might feel there is no one you can confide in and trust. There is one we can completely trust, He is our Heavenly Father.
It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. (Psalms 118:8)
When we look at this grand creation that is our world it is a witness of His trustworthiness to each of us. We can always have that reassurance that each day will come forth as it should in perfect order. All because of a trustworthy Father in Heaven.
Trusting God means we know He will do what He says He will. If we do our part, He will do His. However, He will never let us down or forget us.
There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated and when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated. (D&C 130:20-21)
You might ask how it is possible to trust God with all that is going on in the world today? You can, Heavenly Father is perfect, unchangeable, steadfast and immovable. He is different from any person you will ever meet. We are an imperfect people prone to sin and a willingness to change our minds on a whim; and yet He loves us and wishes only for us to succeed.
Furthermore, trusting in Heavenly Father is a necessary step to gaining our salvation. When we start to trust Him we will more likely desire to obey Him. Obeying God with a pure heart brings us inner peace in a world where there is no peace.
Job is a great example for each of us to remember. In the midst of all his suffering, he continued to trust in the Lord. He never turned his back on the Lord.
Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him. He also shall be my salvation: for an hypocrite shall not come between him. (Job 13:15–16)
And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: blessed be the name of the Lord. (Job 1:21)
Job was anxious to obey the Lord in every way because he trusted Him. Job was truly blessed for his obedience and example. I truly believe that we can find that same trust as Job did in our Father in Heaven.