Inviting the Holy Ghost into our lives

For Christmas this year, my 92 year old mother sent out a present to all of her children and grandchildren.  She put together stories about when the Spirit had directed her and the blessing it was to have had those experiences.  It was a wonderful gift for her 7 children and 44 grandchildren to receive that in the mail.  It served as a great reminder of what is most important in life from someone who has the wisdom that comes from years of life experience.  I am grateful for her example of seeking the presence of the Holy Ghost in her life.  I would like to speak to you tonight on how we can do the same.

To start I feel it is important to understand why we would want to have the Holy Ghost as a companion.  In the introductory materials for our Come Follow Me course of study it says the following:

“The Holy Ghost guides us to the truth and bears witness of that truth (see John 16:13). He enlightens our minds, quickens our understandings, and touches our hearts with revelation from God, the source of all truth. The Holy Ghost purifies our hearts. He inspires in us a desire to live by truth, and He whispers to us ways to do this. Truly, “the Holy Ghost … shall teach [us] all things” (John 14:26).

For these reasons, in our efforts to live, learn, and teach the gospel, we should first and foremost seek the companionship of the Spirit. This goal should govern our choices and guide our thoughts and actions. We should seek after whatever invites the influence of the Spirit and reject whatever drives that influence away—for we know that if we can be worthy of the presence of the Holy Ghost, we can also be worthy to live in the presence of Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.”

In addition to this we learn in the Book of Mormon, in Moroni Chapter 8 verse 26 that the Holy Ghost is a Comforter that fills us with hope and perfect love.  Christ himself referred to the Holy Ghost as a Comforter in John 14:26.

We all need truth, enlightenment, revelation and direction in a world full of confusion.  We could all use purification of our hearts when we fall and pick ourselves back up again to try to do better.  In our own personal challenging times and trials we would all benefit from a source of hope and comfort.  We need the Holy Ghost in our lives.

So how do we invite the Holy Ghost to be a part of our lives?  I would suggest that it begins with desire.

In Alma chapter 32, the great chapter on faith, Alma teaches that we begin the journey with just having a desire to believe.  If we have that desire, we are asking for the Holy Ghost to come and testify of truth, and to guide our thoughts and actions. Having the desire is a great place to start, but desire alone will not make the Holy Ghost our constant companion, that will require some effort on our part as all good things in our life do.  

I would like to share with you my thoughts on what that effort looks like when inviting the Holy Ghost to be constant companion in our lives.

First, Prayer.  Prayers is the way that we speak to our Heavenly Father and seek His choicest blessings.  As we have learned tonight, those blessings would include having His Spirit to be with us.  In the Bible Dictionary it teaches us that “Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.”  So we can get to work by falling to our knees and pleading with our Heavenly Father to inspire us, teach us, lift us and comfort us through His Holy Spirit.

Second, Awareness. If we pray for guidance and then jump up off our knees and immediately immerse ourselves in worldly things, we may miss the answer when it comes. We need to listen. When we pray, we should take advantage of the silence after our prayer to wait patiently and listen to see if the Spirit will whisper to our mind and heart.  When we do go about our day, we should continue to be open to the quiet voice of the Spirit so that we don’t miss the messages when they arrive. I believe that our Heavenly Father is always wanting to communicate to us through the Spirit, but that he will usually not shout above the world to be heard.  Rather, as we learn in the Book of Kings when Elijah was listening for the Lord, the Lord was not in the wind, nor the earthquake, nor the fire, but in a still small voice.  If we are to hear that voice, we must remain vigilant and aware.

Third, Action.  When we hear that quiet voice, it is time to act.  Our former Prophet, Thomas S. Monson, said that he always wanted the Lord to know that if He needed something done he could ask Tommy Monson to do it.  We should have the same mindset, when the Spirit whispers we should act on the prompting immediately and show that we can be counted on.  The more we act when prompted, the more the promptings and inspiration will come. We must be willing to commit ourselves to acting consistently. Also, if we are acting based on promptings of the Spirit, our chosen actions will be aligned with God’s will for us, we will be obedient.

And that is the fourth step in inviting the Holy Ghost, Obedience.  If we want the Spirit to speak to us, we must go where He is most likely to be found.  This requires that we stand in holy places both physically and spiritually. That we avoid darkness and seek light.  We also need to learn that we don’t obey just to check the box.  As President Dallin H. Oaks taught, in his October 2000 General Conference talk, The Challenge to Become, “The commandments, ordinances, and covenants of the gospel are not a list of deposits required to be made in some heavenly account. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a plan that shows us how to become what our Heavenly Father desires us to become.”  Our personal worthiness to have the presence of the Spirit invites enlightenment, guidance and direction that when followed increase our personal worthiness and help us to become more like our Savior.  It is a wonderful cycle of growth.  And please recognize that personal worthiness is not perfection, the Apostle David A. Bednar taught that “as long as we are doing our best and pressing forward on the covenant path, and repenting as we go, then indeed, we [can be] influenced by the Holy Ghost all the time.”

In my experience, the fifth and final step on my list is the most powerful in helping us invite the Spirit and makes the other steps easier.  Number five is Service.  There is something seemingly counterintuitive about the idea that thinking of others before ourselves and serving others actually leads to more personal happiness and helps us overcome our challenges, but I have found it to be true 100% of the time.  I believe that it is true because when we are putting others first, it is when we are behaving most like the Savior which connects us to him and allows Him to show us through His Spirit where to find our own answers, peace, and comfort when needed.  

Service also makes it easier to be obedient.  We learn in 1 Peter 4:8 to “have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity preventeth (JST) a multitude of sins”.  When we are thinking of others, we are casting off selfishness, and all sinful choices are moments of selfishness, when we want to do what we want instead of what we should.  Thus, being service minded allows us to avoid those selfish moments that lead to sin.

I have also found that when I am seeking to bless the lives of those around me, the Spirit seems to whisper a little louder so that I know who and how to help.  It is as though the Spirit wants me to know that I am doing things the right way when I am putting the needs of others before my own.

Brothers and Sisters, as we follow these steps we can make room for the Spirit to be a constant companion in our lives. We will only see a real difference if we are truly committed to the effort.

This reminds me of a recent conversation my wife and I had about her Come Follow Me study in the Book of Mormon.  She shared with me that the simple scripture in the Book of Mormon where Nephi shares that his father dwelt in a tent had taken on new meaning for her.  It wasn’t just a factual statement about where Lehi was living.  It was declaring his level of commitment to following the Lord’s will.  The scripture doesn’t say that Lehi went camping for a weekend, it says he now lived in a tent.  He had abandoned his life of comfort and his home at the invitation of the Lord and was now living a new way.  If we want the Spirit in our lives as a constant companion we can’t just go camping where the Spirit is for a weekend, we must commit ourselves for a lifetime.

As you exercise your desire to invite the Holy Ghost as a constant companion in your life, I urge you to pray, to be aware, to act, to obey and to serve others.  It will take effort, consistency, and repetition, but in time you will find that you recognize the voice of the Spirit more clearly and that you have learned how He speaks to you personally.  What a wonderful gift our loving Heavenly Father has given us, to be able to have his Spirit to be with us if we will only do our part to make a place for the Spirit in our lives.