Thriving Spiritually

What does it mean to spiritually thrive? And how are you doing?

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By Matthew F. Wickman (BA ’92) in the Spring 2021 Issue

Spiritual gifts are traces in us of our divine natures, aspects of ourselves in which we more fully reflect our Heavenly Parents. We read in scripture that “there are diversities of gifts” (1 Cor. 12:4) and that to each of us “is given a gift” (D&C 46:11) or perhaps several gifts. I have seen how drawing on these unique gifts can bring us closer to God, perhaps because they call on parts of ourselves that are closer to God already.

“In their way, spiritual experiences are just such miraculous particles, enabling us to glimpse the vastness of God’s plan of salvation. ” —Matthew Wickman

We can’t always see heaven working on our behalf, but any experience with the Spirit, no matter how small, is evidence that God is doing just that. Forget for a moment receiving some great answer to prayer. Have you felt the Spirit even a little as you have sought the Lord in prayer? Have you felt the Spirit convey to you that God loves you, or that He understands you, or that He has great hopes for you, or that He sorrows with you, or that He rejoices with you, or that He appreciates your gratitude to Him or your kind deed for someone else? Have you felt the Spirit open your mind to help you learn something new, or turn you to something good, or inspire you to perceive something beautiful, or reassure you that things will be okay, that you aren’t lost, that God knows exactly where you are? If you have ever had any of these experiences or myriad others like them, you have effectively experienced our Father’s plan of salvation in a grain of sand.

You have been shown that God is real, that your life has a purpose, and that Christ’s Atonement is making it possible for you to feel God’s presence a little more fully.

Be Willing to Serve

 

Feeling Distant from Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ? Here Are 5 Ways to Close the Gap

By Sister Tamara W. Runia

First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency

1. Be Willing to Serve

When I was a college freshman, I was called to teach Relief Society. I hadn’t done anything like this before. I struggled to make time to prepare.

There were some Sunday mornings when I would call the counselor I served with and say, “I didn’t have time to look at the lesson, so I won’t be able to come teach today.” And I just wouldn’t go.

At the end of the semester, a member of the bishopric met with me and said, “We’re making adjustments in some of the positions in the ward, and we’re releasing you.”

I know we don’t get fired from our callings, but in that moment, it felt a lot like getting fired to me.

And I knew exactly why. This calling had come through inspiration to someone who felt like I could serve, and I’d let them down—the Relief Society presidency, the bishopric, and most of all, the Lord.

That calling had been an opportunity to feel a sense of purpose, to belong to something bigger than myself, and to feel closer to God at that time in life, but I hadn’t seen that.

I have not been perfect, but ever since that experience, I’ve tried to serve with my whole heart in the callings and assignments I’ve been given. When we have a willingness to serve others with love, it’s one of many ways we can feel the love of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

"I Need Thee Every Hour" sung a lot with Prophet's Meeting

 “I Need Thee Every Hour”

When the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles meet each week in the temple, they always begin their meetings with a hymn. For decades, President Russell M. Nelson (1924–2025) and other quorum members documented the hymns they sang. According to the dates recorded in President Nelson’s temple hymnbook, one of the most frequently sung hymns was “I Need Thee Every Hour” (Hymns [1985], no. 98). President Nelson often was accompanist.

President Dallin H. Oaks said, “Picture the spiritual impact of a handful of the Lord’s servants singing that song before praying for His guidance in fulfilling their mighty responsibilities.”

Worshipping Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ Through Sacred Music

By Melanie Jex

Church Music Team

Deciding on the New Hymns

 

Worshipping Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ Through Sacred Music

By Melanie Jex

Church Music Team

When Hymns for Home and Church was prepared, Church leaders carefully reviewed the lyrics of each hymn to make sure the doctrine was clear and accurate. For example, the lyrics of the song “When I Am Baptized,” as sung by children around the world in many languages, have spoken of our wrongs being “washed away.”

Some interpreted those words to mean that baptism’s waters cleanse us from sin. As Church leaders reviewed these words, they chose to adjust the lyrics to teach more clearly that the Savior, Jesus Christ, is the source of cleansing from sin. The revised words in the second verse now read:

I know when I am baptized I choose the Savior’s way,

And I will be forgiven as I turn to Him each day.”

...Sacred music is a participation-based experience. It is not reserved for the musically talented. The Lord has said He delights “in the song of the heart” (Doctrine and Covenants 25:12). He didn’t set a standard for vocal skill or instrumental ability—only that we sing from our hearts. As Elder Patrick Kearon encouraged, “So let’s sing! And praise Him! [Psalm 100:1].”

How Affliction and Weakness Can Result in Happiness

 “We should … give thanks for our afflictions because they turn our hearts to God and give us opportunities to prepare for what God would have us become. The Lord taught the prophet Moroni, ‘I give unto men weakness that they may be humble,’ and then promised that ‘if they humble themselves … and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them’ (Ether 12:27). In the midst of the persecutions the Latter-day Saints were suffering in Missouri, the Lord gave a similar teaching and promise: ‘Verily I say unto you my friends, fear not, let your hearts be comforted; yea, rejoice evermore, and in everything give thanks; … and all things wherewith you have been afflicted shall work together for your good’ (Doctrine and Covenants 98:1, 3).”

President Dallin H. Oaks, “Give Thanks in All Things,” Liahona, May 2003, 96.

Sorrow Can Be Sacred Ground

 

Why Sorrow in the Plan of Happiness?

By Lyle J. Burrup

Retired Family Services Counselor

After Andria’s death, grief became my constant companion and mentor for months. Robert Browning Hamilton’s poem eloquently captures what sorrow did for me:

I walked a mile with Pleasure;

She chatted all the way,

But left me none the wiser

For all she had to say.

I walked a mile with Sorrow,

And ne’er a word said she;

But oh, the things I learned from her

When Sorrow walked with me!

The book of Ecclesiastes teaches a similar principle: “In much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow” (Ecclesiastes 1:18).

Sorrow—which includes opposition, weakness, tribulation, and affliction—can be the faithful companion and daily mentor God intends if we but know how to use it as such....

...Second, our attitude regarding sorrow is of monumental importance. Experience with sorrow can be sacred ground. Learn to treat it as such. After a sorrowful experience, step back and examine what happened. Humbly and objectively analyze:

• Why did that happen?

• What good things can I learn from this?

• Can I use what I have learned to avoid this in the future?

Flat Relationships

 

Your Children See You—Do You See Them?

By President Timothy L. Farnes

Young Men General President

I love the following counsel from President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was speaking about marriage at the time, but the principles can be applied to other family relationships:

“No matter how flat your relationship may be at the present, if you keep adding pebbles of kindness, compassion, listening, sacrifice, understanding, and selflessness, eventually a mighty pyramid will begin to grow.

“If it appears to take forever, remember: [family relationships] are meant to last forever! So ‘be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great [relationship]. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great’ [Doctrine and Covenants 64:33].”