Revealing Questions ~ Part One

Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Evening,

this post should take three to five minutes to read from start to finish.

This week's posts focuses on Questions, Relationships, and Self-Improvement. This post focuses on a May 2018 BYU Devotional, and it is called "Revealing Questions" by Sister Brianna M. Magnusson. This post is part one. I would like to share with you some highlights whilst I was reading the Devotional. I hope that you would be able to learn something new whilst reading throughout this post. 

Sister Magnusson has mentioned the following;

"... A university education requires that you learn about many different subjects, some of which will come naturally to you and some of which you will never quite feel confident about. Some subjects will be exciting and engaging and others you will vow never to willingly revisit. Regardless of the subject, you know from the beginning that success will require you to work usually to work hard. 

You will have an instructor to guide you in your journey, and she will provide you with things to read, assignments that make you think, and exams that allow you to prove yourself. You may have teaching assistants who can help you, and, of course, you have the assistance of the instructor.

Learning in Mortality

... Elder Robert D. Hales taught, “The purpose of our life on earth is to grow, develop, and be strengthened through our own experiences.” ... These trials allow us to prove that we are progressing in our mortal journey, and they may be particularly intense periods of growth. ...

To fulfill the purpose of learning and gaining experience, it was essential that, as we were born onto the earth, we passed through a veil. In so doing, we came to earth having forgotten all that had occurred before. This is perhaps one of the most challenging things about our lives. Because we are now restricted by mortal eyes, there is much about the eternal perspective and the purposes and timing of God that we do not understand. ...

Imperfect Knowledge and Revelation

... Spiritual knowledge may operate the same way. When we receive confirmation of truth through personal revelation, we may be met with opposition from our contemporaries because we cannot explain how or why something is. ... our understanding of spiritual truths has grown exponentially since the day when Joseph Smith knelt in the Sacred Grove. Yet, despite all that has been revealed, we know there is still more. 

The ninth article of faith says: We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. We believe He will yet reveal many great and important things. This promise of pending revelation tells us that the process of revelation is ongoing and that things we do not yet know will someday be known.

"If we stop asking questions, stop thinking, stop pondering, we can
thwart the revelations of the Spirit." - Dieter F. Uchtdorf.

Personal revelation is the ongoing and lifelong process of thinning the veil that separates us from our Father in Heaven. Revelation increases our capacity to understand spiritual things and expands our knowledge. 

Because our Father in Heaven wants us to succeed, He has provided for us the scriptures and the teachings of the prophets to help us. 

We have peers, teachers, and Church leaders with whom we can discuss these materials. We have a living prophet, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and, most important, access to our Father in Heaven through prayer. Just like learning in a classroom, success in acquiring spiritual knowledge will require diligent and effortful work.

Questions and Uncertainty

As we strive to expand our spiritual knowledge, questions about policies, procedures, or principles come to us all. Elder Hales wrote, “As we grow in the gospel, it is natural to have questions and sometimes even doubts. Genuine questions can actually fuel our spiritual growth.”... Spiritual discovery, or revelation, also begins this way. We observe or encounter something we do not understand and we begin to ask questions. 

Questions can serve as a starting point for receiving personal revelation. Gospel questions may also arise from the influence of competing voices. Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf stated: Never in the history of the world have we had easier access to more information—some of it true, some of it false, and much of it partially true. Consequently, never in the history of the world has it been more important to learn how to correctly discern between truth and error.

When we have concerns or questions about the gospel, seeking revelation on the subject should be our most important objective. Questions particularly questions that arise about the gospel can be especially trying. Questions are inherently born of uncertainty, and we as humans are vehemently opposed to uncertainty. We dislike the feeling of not knowing because we feel vulnerable. ...

Stay Tuned until next time.