The Holy Ghost

Today our fifth son was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Whew!

I am absolutely overjoyed that I am now not alone in trying to help this enormous bundle of intensity figure it out! Now he has the Holy Ghost to Be. There. With. Him. 24/7.

Since I was the “designated” speaker to the assigned topic of the Holy Ghost to speak at his baptism, I was gently reminded of some of the wonderful things about the Holy Ghost.

Here are some of the things that I shared:

• Before one is baptized, one can have the blessings of the power of the Holy Ghost. The power of the Holy Ghost gives one the witness that that gospel is true. It can come upon someone as they read and pray about the Book of Mormon. It can influence a heart when it hears the words of a true and living prophet.

• Along with being confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, one receives the gift of the Holy Ghost. This gift gives one the rights to have the companionship of the Holy Ghost at all times (I suppose that is why we are asked to His witness at I all times and in all things and in all places).

• There are so many benefits of having the gift of the Holy Ghost. Here are just a few:

 The Holy Ghost will testify that God is our Heavenly Father and that we are His children.

 The Holy Ghost will testify that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

 The Holy Ghost will testify of truth: The truth of the Book of Mormon as well as the truth that 2+2=4!

 The Holy Ghost is a Comforter. He will provide comfort in times of affliction or strife. He will comfort us when we are in need of peace or direction.

 The Holy Ghost will bring ALL things to our remembrance. This may be a very good thing, particularly when we’ve lost keys or homework or shoes. However, if we don’t repent of our sins – no matter how big or small – the Holy Ghost will have us remember these, too! He does this so hopefully, we will have “godly sorrow,” helping us to repent so we can be clean before God!

 The Holy Ghost will be a guide.

 The Holy Ghost will be a protector.

 The Holy Ghost will be a cleansing agent [think bleach] to purify and sanctify us from ALL sin. Isn’t that AWESOME?! This is one of the reasons that baptism AND the receiving of the gift of the Holy Ghost go hand in hand – we are baptized for a remission of our sins and the Holy Ghost is there to cleanse us as we repent from our sins!!!

• The Holy Ghost will speak quietly. Our job is to LISTEN and then DO what the Spirit has told us. Elder Richard G. Scott, from October 2009 General Conference said this: “Spirituality yields two fruits, The first is inspiration to KNOW what to do. The second is POWER, or the capacity to DO IT.”

Below are five things (although there are so much more) that come immediately to my mind when I think of what I need to do to be able to hear and follow the promptings of the Holy Ghost:

 Pray.
     Praying for the Spirit helps me recognize it when it talks to me, It also helps direct me when I pray, so I can pray for the things that are in accordance to God’ will.

 Write down your ideas, feelings, impressions. Keep a Personal Revelation Journal.
     My journal is a simple notebook. I started it the day I heard Elder Scott’s talk. I am trying to write down thoughts and ideas that come to me. Earlier this week my husband and I were discussing a specific need for our family. Although those things we discussed came from our mouths and our heads, I wrote it down in my Personal Revelation Journal because I was unsure on how I – mother and CEO of the family – could best implement the idea. Guess what? I went to Relief Society Meeting this week and what we did answered my questions e.x.a.c.t.l.y
    It was amazing! Because I had taken my Personal Revelation Journal with me and was literally recording all my answers in my notebook before I even realized that it had answered my question!!!!!

 Beware of strong emotions that overpower the Spirit.
     Elder Scott said this (which was a GREAT object lesson for those eight year-olds as I held a grape and a jalepeño in front of them): “The inspiring influence of the Holy Spirit can be overcome or masked by strong emotions, such as ANGER, HATE, PASSION, FEAR, or PRIDE. When such influences are present, it is like trying to savor the delicate flavor of a grape while eating a jalepeño pepper. Both flavors are present, but one completely overpowers the other. In like manner, strong emotions overcome the delicate promptings of the Holy Ghost.”

 REPENT! (Need I say more?)

 Do what the Spirit has asked you to do.
     CLICK HERE for an AMAZING story I shared (in brief, of course) with those at the baptism. (I even checked it out with the Church's Missionary Department, just to be sure this was a true story).
     It is a letter written by Sister Lisa Laycock, wife to President Larry Laycock who is the current Mission President in the Santiago Chile East Mission. (You know, Chile, home to the 8.8 earthquake which is the reason I have to go to two different grocery stores to get an EXPENSIVE bunch of grapes for my object lesson!).

There are so many things to which I am deeply grateful. The promise of having the Holy Ghost as my companion is one of those at the very tippy-top of my list!!

I am overwhelmed with awe that the Lord promises us that He will never leave us comfortless; that in a world of noise, noise, noise - if we listen with our hearts - we will hear His voice!