President Henry B. Eyring: Continuing Revelation

I am a convert to the church but thanks to an active extended family I have grown up hearing about the gospel and modern day prophets. I didn't become a member of the church until I was in college but because of this family history of faith, I never struggled with the idea of continuing revelation. In my mind it just made sense: Heavenly Father loves us so of course He would keep talking to us.  

Despite this acceptance of the gosple principle of continuing revelation, I must admit that I have always struggled to identify personal revelation, the type of revelation that is just for me. It is probably something I will have to work on my entire life, but I am thankful to know that revelation does happen and that I can develop my ability to recgonize it.

President Henry B. Eyring: Continuing Revelation

Read or watch the full talk here

One of the reasons I struggle with personal revelation is because in some respects I tend to look at the world in a very logical way. This was helpful in my acceptance of modern revelation because its existence made sense given my understanding and faith in who God is, a loving Heavenly Father. My logical lens can, however, present a challenge to understanding personal revelation because often times revelation doesn't always make sense. 

According to President Eyring, "we all know that human judgement and logical thinking will not be enough to get answers to the questions that matter most in life." This has proved very true for me.

President Eyring then went on to say that, "we need revelation from God. And we will need not just one revelation in a time of stress, but we need a constantly renewed stream. We need not just one flash of light and comfort, but we need the continuing blessing of communication with God." 

A reliance on revelation is crucial for members of the church. Truth be told, it is crucial for all of God's children. Yes, I realize I am saying that after just admitting I struggle to understand personal revelation. But I am working on it. You can to.

I realize that some people might question how crucial that reliance is. If you are one of them, I'd ask you to consider how this church began in modern times. As President Eyring reminded me today, our entire church exists on the premise of continued revelation and the fact that Joseph Smith received personal revelation. 

Now, I know that Heavenly Father could make His plan work no matter what. But I also know that He sent us down here to prepare for eternal life. Learning to rely on revelation is part of our education. Just as Joseph Smith had to learn to rely on personal revelation, so must we. Then we must use our agency to act on that council.

Thankfully President Eyring has some suggestions for how to become better at this challenging task. During his talk, President Eyring offered this guide for personal revelation: “Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven." He then went on to promise that, “the Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion.”

I don't kow about you, but I want the Holy Ghost as my constant companion. I want to "wax strong in the presence of God."

Ok, there is one last truth about personal revelation that President Eyring acknowledged in his talk.Brother and sisters, we have to accept that sometimes the revelation we receive is not what we want to hear. It is, however, the word of God and we need to listen to it and act on His council even if it doesn't seem to make sense, and even if it is not what we wanted to do.

Ok, I want to end with a few of President Eyring's final words. "Heavenly Father hears your prayers. He loves you. He knows your name. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and our Redeemer. He loves you beyond your ability to comprehend."