I usually approach General Conference prayerfully with questions. I have issues in my life right now requiring personal revelation. I'm certainly not alone in this predicament. And I recognize in this conference my dependence on the Lord is a good thing, not a bad thing. Some questions have been answered, but new questions have been raised.
And yet, I find it interesting that despite the billions in the world, and the millions in the Church, the first four talks in this morning's General Conference centered around personal revelation--exactly what I've been praying for.
President Eyring began the series of questions of what to pray for. Is my family in danger? And, if so, do I flee to safety or stay where I'm at? And a prophet is praying for the words to enlighten, inspire, and succor his audience. Then we realize in the next talk, as Elder Nelson addresses us, that there are certainly fifteen such men praying for the same guidance. But wait a minute. Haven't the Brethren been preparing these talks for months, or even years, and the words are now established in typeset?
So what are those words the prophets are praying about? Could it be the same thing Nephi prayed about so long ago? In a sense of minor frustration, Nephi laments, "And now I, Nephi, cannot write all the things which were taught among my people; neither am I mighty in writing, like unto speaking; for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men" (2 Nephi 33:1).
I always thought Nephi's writings were pretty good. If the talks are any better, I can't wait to hear one! Are the living apostles and prophets praying for something similar? Maybe their prayer would be that the Holy Ghost will carry the right words and the right feelings into your heart and mine. Maybe they are praying that those tailor-made messages will be heard and felt by us.
But sometimes it's so hard. Lack of patience is one of my character defects and I want to see everything clearly right now. But I hear in the messages of this conference that such personal revelation comes "line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little" (2 Nephi 28:30).
The first message I heard is that I must "be up and doing" (Alma 60:24) rather than just sit back and wait for the Lord to lay out a clear-cut, detailed plan void of any errors or omissions. That prompting came yesterday.
Then today another question was raised. Do I trust the Lord enough to follow personal revelation I don't like? If the answer seems hard, will I be obedient anyway?
Isaiah said, "And he (the Lord) shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem" (Isaiah 8:14).
It's a hard question. Will I get offended at the word of the Lord? Will I stumble at the difficulty or fear of the answer? Or will I turn to the safety of the Lord and His tender mercies, who knows my real needs far better than I?
I now resume writing. Conference is now over. I had hoped to finish this post two hours ago and watch the final session in peace and comfort. But I'm glad I didn't, because I wanted to share about the "waters of Shiloah," also contained within this chapter. Isaiah stated:
"Forasmuch as this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah that go softly, and rejoice in . . ." (Isaiah 8:6). Wow, it's not even a complete sentence, just like this post wasn't completed, and just like all my questions are not completely answered. But the ending doesn't matter, because if you read the first four verses of this chapter, you will see Isaiah and Mrs. Isaiah are going to have a son, and before this kid is old enough to talk, this prophecy will be fulfilled. And the ending still doesn't matter, because after the prophecy is fulfilled, people will find something else to distract them from the apostolic messages.
Shiloah is the Hebrew form of Siloam in the New Testament, which is interpreted in John to mean sent. And the Greek word for Sent (and in this context it means Christ) is apostello, where we get the English word apostle (see John 9:7; Strong's #G649). King Hezekiah had a tunnel built to divert the Gihon Spring to run inside the city walls into the Pool of Siloam. So these "waters that go softly" represent apostolic keys and messengers that soothe and heal.
But instead of having the waters that go softly, the people looked to other sources, "Therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many" (Isaiah 8:7).
In the afternoon session of conference, Elder Ballard talked about an expedition through 14 miles of whitewater rapids, and Elder Larry S Kacher spoke of getting caught in a riptide of dangerous currents.
The messages of the prophets and apostles deliver us to safe waters. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to watch conference. It was absolutely wonderful. The Spirit was so strong. I feel like I'm on a spiritual high that could possibly last for six months! And as the days, weeks, and months go by, increased personal revelation will come.
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