The Holy Ghost testifies of both the Father and the Son, leads us, and through Jesus Christ, sanctifies us. By using the gift of the Holy Ghost to seek for God, His mysteries will be unveiled to us.

Revelation, Sanctification, and Passing Through the Veil

Brothers and sisters, as I have struggled to find words, I feel a great need to pray that like Paul wrote to the Romans, the Spirit will intercede between you and I with groanings or sighings that cannot be uttered (see Romans 8:26). I have felt impressed to use four songs that have had great meaning in my life to frame the change in focus for our ward this next year. These songs are not hymns, but I hope they will help convey to you both the things of my soul and how the Holy Ghost can always be with us as it sanctifies us through Jesus Christ.

Love God by Keeping Our Covenants

Teardrop - Love is a Verb

The first song, Teardrop, is about both feeling hopeless like a “teardrop on the fire” yet fearless in facing the truth and moving forward through loss and sorrow. I've thought most about the first two lines:

Love, love is a verb

Love is a doing word

The first and great commandment is to love God, not with a passing thought or minimal effort, but “with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:36-38). Jesus taught:

He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (John 14:21)

When we think of love as a doing word, we realize that we love God by believing on His Son, Jesus Christ, repenting, changing our hearts, and making and keeping covenants. In return they love us, by blessing us with Their grace, power, and joy (see 3 Nephi 20:22). Rather than ask ourselves “do I love God”, perhaps it is more appropriate to ask, “am I loving God in all of my acts, thoughts, and desires”?

Love God by Keeping Your Covenants

The zeal, or diligence, in which we are making and keeping covenants is one of the best indicators for how we are loving God. We must be honest in our assessment. Do we always remember Jesus Christ? Are we acting in a way that demonstrates taking upon His name? Are we truly being obedient and keeping His commandments? Sacrificing a broken heart and contrite spirit? Living the law of the gospel? Fully living the the law of chastity? Are we holding back a part of ourselves rather than consecrating all that we have and are to the kingdom of God?

Sometimes we tend to think of zealousness as bad, thinking of the example of the Pharisees only, but it wasn't their zeal that was the problem. It was their hypocrisy, showing a pretended outward display of devotion to God when their hearts were set upon their own power, status and self-interest. Compare this to the people of Ammon who were “distinguished for their zeal towards God, and also towards men” (Alma 27:27) and “zealous for keeping the commandments of God” (Alma 21:23).

The Book of Mormon

I would hope that my challenge to you has made you more zealous in keeping your covenants. Loving God may mean drawing more careful lines around your own desires or giving up sins that you have justified as insignificant (Alma 45:16). You may note that the challenge to read the Book of Mormon is only a small portion of what is required to remove the Lord's condemnation of us all. The Lord said:

And your minds in times past have been darkened because of unbelief, and because you have treated lightly the things you have received—

And [the children of Zion, the whole church] shall remain under this condemnation until they repent and remember the new covenant, even the Book of Mormon and the former commandments which I have given them, not only to say, but to do according to that which I have written. (D&C 84:54-57, emphasis added)

The Book of Mormon is a testament that God keeps His covenants and helps us learn how we may do the same. It is the key to keeping the covenant we have made as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to gather Israel (see Russell M. Nelson, “The Book of Mormon, the Gathering of Israel, and the Second Coming,” Ensign, July 2014).

In an email to her friends and family while on her mission, Sister Grace Young wrote, with her trademark beauty and depth, something so powerful about how the Book of Mormon can be used to gather Israel and to help people have faith in Jesus Christ and repent:

"[When] I become passionate about something I'm studying, whether it's a devotional or a conference talk or a story from the book of mormon, it infests my mind until I see it in the stars & sky, & I hear it in … country songs … & it's not the pride in me that wants to fix people's problems, but it's the spirit coursing through my veins with such a fixed power leading me to the hopeless & helpless. I open my tool box & turn its pages & somehow find a story written just for them. … Unfair coworkers who don't give you enough credit? Nephi had to be an example to his other brothers Lamam & lemuel. Don't believe in a God but you believe in a Supreme creator? King Lamoni was the same, until he learned the truth, & this led to the conversion of a kingdom."

It is our sacred and special responsibility to read the Book of Mormon, share it, and do what it teaches us.

Power, Safety and Peace

Brothers and sisters, there is power, safety, and peace in living according to your covenants. “Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart” (Psalm 119:2). “Search diligently, pray always, and be believing, and all things shall work together for your good, if ye walk uprightly and remember the covenant wherewith ye have covenanted” (D&C 90:24, emphasis added). Like Ezra, we should prepare our hearts “to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it” (Ezra 7:10). Then God's covenant to us will be fulfilled that the “powers of heaven shall be in the midst of this people; yea, even I will be in the midst of you” (3 Nephi 20:22). Let us love God by keeping our covenants.

Seeking and Searching

You may have noticed in the last few scriptures a command to seek or search. This subject leads me to the next song and a transition to our theme for the next year.

Charlotte Sometimes

One of my favorite songs of all time is one I first heard in high school called Charlotte Sometimes. Recently, following an odd prompting, I was surprised to learn that the song was based on a children’s novel written around the time I was born. The song very clearly uses language from the beginning of the book where Charlotte is experiencing her first night at a boarding school and foreshadows her confusion to come.

All the faces, all the voices blur

Change to one face, change to one voice

Prepare yourself for bed, the light seems bright and glares on white walls

All the sounds of Charlotte sometimes

She is Charlotte sometimes because she discovers when sleeping in a particular bed, she is transported back to the year 1918, swapping bodies with another girl named Clare who attended the same boarding school 40 years earlier. As she moves between time periods and then finds herself stuck as Clare, she starts to wonder about her existence:

“Perhaps we never look at people properly, Charlotte thought. She remembered looking in a mirror once and trying to draw herself; how, after she had been staring at her features for a little while, they seemed no longer to make her face or any face. They were just a collection of eyes and nose and mouth. Perhaps if you stared at anyone like that, their faces would disintegrate in the same way, till you could not tell whether you knew them or not …. And, she thought, uncomfortably, what would happen if people did not recognize you? Would you know who you were yourself? If tomorrow they started to call her Vanessa or Janet or Elizabeth, would she know how to be, how to feel, like Charlotte? Were you some particular person only because people recognized you as that?”

When I was a young man, I felt very much like Charlotte. While no body swapping or time jumping took place, I had so much confusion, wondering: Who am I? Why am I here, in this place and time? What is this life? Is there really life beyond what I experience right now? I felt akin to the scriptures that say “the time … and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream, we being a lonesome and a solemn people,” ((Jacob 7:26) “wanderers in a strange land” (Alma 26:36), and that my “days on earth [were] as a shadow” (1 Chr. 29:15).

Seeking with All Your Heart

These feelings became an opportunity for me, like they do for so many, to search and seek, pondering on who I truly am and what exists beyond me. The command to seek or search permeates the scriptures (“Seek, Sought,” Topical Guide), as does the method we should use to obey that commandment, which is: we must turn to God in special, quiet moments that we set apart (“Prayer, Pray” Topical Guide). As President Nelson said:

What will your seeking open for you? What wisdom do you lack? What do you feel an urgent need to know or understand? Follow the example of the Prophet Joseph. Find a quiet place where you can regularly go. Humble yourself before God. Pour out your heart to your Heavenly Father. Turn to Him for answers and for comfort (“Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives,” President Russell M. Nelson).

Our view is limited. God's is all-encompassing (D&C 38:2). Perhaps one of the reasons that nature is so effective at drawing our thoughts to God is because we are humbled by the earth in its beauty and realize the existence of mountains, rivers, valleys, and trees took time so far beyond our brief moment here in this life (Alma 30:44).

Sister Young again wrote about needing and having one of these moments:

"One night we stargazed in a little field behind our apartment. I was on my own blanket with nothing in my sight except for the galaxy that God created for me. & it brought tears to my eyes because i could hear my heart beating & nothing else, & being alone shook me. It shook me so soft & sweet & I mourned the feeling of being comfortably alone."

To discover who we truly are, and our place in his creations, we must seek God. It is promised “If thou seek him, he will be found of thee” (1 Chr. 28:9). Our seeking, like keeping our covenants, should not be casual. In 2nd Chronicles, all of Judah “entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul … and [they] sought him with their whole desire; and he was found of them” (2 Chr. 15:12-15).

I have personally found God, again and again, through sacred moments in closets, still mornings and evenings, in the expanse of nature, temples, while serving His children, whether in my family, in the Church of Jesus Christ, or in the wider world. But most often, He has been found in the quiet and private recesses of my heart. Like Charlotte, sometimes I feel my identity is hidden behind this mortal frame, but by seeking and finding God I have found who I truly am and who I may become in the eternities.

Revelation and Sanctification

Cathedrals

This search that we must all undertake, whether a convert to the Church or one who has been raised in it their whole lives is felt in the third song, titled Cathedrals. It beautifully describes how in the midst of every day life there can be sacred places and times that help prompt yearnings for God's mysteries to be revealed.

In the shadows of tall buildings

Of open arches endlessly kneeling

Sonic landscapes, echoing vistas

Someone is listening from a safe distance

The line moves slowly into a fading light

A final moment in the dead of night

In the cathedrals of New York and Rome

There is a feeling that you should just go home

And spend a lifetime finding out just where that is.

Though I relate well to the feeling expressed in the song and relish in the beauty and mystery that exists in these monuments to faith in God, I have not had to spend a lifetime to gain the knowledge of where home is. Home is with my Father in Heaven. It is obtained through His Son, Jesus Christ. Home is being in their presence with as many of my beloved family and friends as I can possibly be. But I will spend a lifetime seeking to be worthy of that home by being washed clean through the blood of Jesus Christ (3 Nephi 27:19). And it will certainly take a lifetime and more to understand all the mysteries that God wants to have revealed to me (Jacob 4:8).

Revelation

Revelation is an important word for us to understand. Re- as you know means again, or in this case to reverse. -veal is veil. So to reveal something means to reverse the veil and uncover the thing that was hidden. Just as God desires to be found if we diligently seek for Him, He desires his mysteries to be revealed by the power of the Holy Ghost. Because the Holy Ghost “speaketh the truth and lieth not” it unveils “things as they really are, and of things as they really will be” (Jacob 4:13).

The Holy Ghost is the facilitator of revelation even when accompanied by other manifestations, such as dreams, visions, angels, and so forth (2 Nephi 32:3) . Conversely, Joseph Smith taught that “No man can receive the Holy Ghost without receiving revelations” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 132). This means that when we are confirmed and given this precious gift with the words "Receive the Holy Ghost," we then have the gift of receiving revelation constantly, like an ever-flowing stream of eternity. Elder David A. Bednar explained how this gift works:

“We often make it hard on ourselves to receive personal revelation. By that I mean, the covenant promise is that as we honor our covenants, we may always have the Holy Ghost to be our constant companion. But we talk about it and we treat it as if hearing the voice of the Lord through His Spirit is the rare event. … We shouldn’t be trying to recognize when [the Holy Ghost] comes, we should be recognizing what happens that causes it to leave. [The Spirit] ought to be with us all of the time. … If you and I are doing our best and we’re not committing serious transgression, then we can count on the Holy Ghost guiding us. …

“… We seem to believe that the Holy Ghost is dramatic and big and sudden, when it’s still and small and incremental over time. You don’t have to recognize that you are receiving revelation in the moment that you are receiving revelation” (“Elder David A. Bednar Discussion,” Evening with a General Authority, Feb. 7, 2020, broadcasts.ChurchofJesusChrist.org).

Principles of Revelation

This year we will learn more about gifts of the Spirit and principles of receiving revelation. For now, three principles will help us start to follow President Nelson's counsel to “increase our spiritual capacity to receive revelation … and hear the voice of the Spirit more frequently and more clearly” (Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Times).

Seek the Lord's will and not your own

“Seek not to counsel the Lord, but to take counsel from his hand” (Jacob 4:10). Which direction do we expect the stream of revelation to flow? From us to God? Or the other way around? We can always share with him what our desires might be. But we will receive more of His word if we then proclaim after the pattern of the Savior, "Not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:42). I have counseled many youth to begin to seek the Lord's will for the direction of their life in order to go beyond a simple recitation of what they want.
Humbly wait on the Lord

This principle encompasses the need for humility, gratitude, and patience. When these attributes are absent or in short supply in our hearts, we become hard to hearing the still, small voice. Relying on our own wisdom or learning will keep true wisdom hidden from us (see 2 Nephi 9:42-43).

Contend no more against the Holy Ghost, but … receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ; … humble yourselves even to the dust, and worship God, in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; … live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you (Alma 34:38).

When we heed this counsel, we will have the patience to receive line upon line, precept upon precept, because by so doing we are tapped into the stream of revelation (2 Nephi 28:30). Sometimes you will receive lines that layer on top of another, slowly building a foundation of understanding and knowledge, perhaps even imperceptibly. Other times you will receive disparate distinct lines that one day you find create a glorious complete picture. Those experienced with revelation can tell you that the lines eventually combine and the resulting realizations are glorious (David A. Bednar, “More Diligent and Concerned at Home”, Ensign, October 2009).
Act on what you receive

The Spirit will not always strive with or remain with us, if we harden our hearts and sin (2 Nephi 26:11). But we can also stop the flow of revelation if we simply do not act on the things we have received.

Alma explained:

It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him. And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full (Alma 12:9-1).

If we desire to have more unveiled to us, we must live according what we have received from God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost already, in the scriptures, through living prophets, and previous personal revelation. We must cherish what we receive enough to record it, to treasure it, to act on it (3 Nephi 23). I urge you to listen carefully this General Conference, or study previous talks, to learn about other important principles for receiving personal revelation.

Sanctification

One of the most important roles of the Holy Ghost is to sanctify us (“Holy Ghost,” Guide to the Scriptures). To sanctify means to make clean, holy, and pure. Moses desired to “sanctify his people so that they might behold the face of God; but they hardened their hearts and could not endure His presence (D&C 84:23-24).

Ether 4:7 has been on my phone screensaver for many years now. After so long, I still love to ponder this verse about the brother of Jared, who famously was able to see the Lord unveiled because of His faith. It says:

And in that day that they shall exercise faith in me, saith the Lord, even as the brother of Jared did, that they may become sanctified in me, then will I manifest unto them the things which the brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations, saith Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of the heavens and of the earth, and all things that in them are. (Ether 4:6-8)

The Holy Ghost leads us to have faith in Christ and repent. It then leads us away from temptation, communicates forgiveness, and prompts us to do good. “After being sanctified by the Holy Ghost, [and] having [our] garments made white, being pure and spotless before God, [we will] not look upon sin save it [be] with abhorrence” so that we, with many others will be “made pure and [enter] into the rest of the Lord our God” (Alma 13:12)

What then must we do be sanctified through the Holy Ghost? At a time when the ancient church in the Book of Mormon was becoming divided between the humble and those lifted up in pride, the members who remained humble not only endured, but became stronger.

They did fast and pray oft, and did wax stronger and stronger in their humility, and firmer and firmer in the faith of Christ, unto the filling their souls with joy and consolation, yea, even to the purifying and the sanctification of their hearts, which sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God (Hel. 3:34-35).

The Holy Ghost will help us yield our hearts to God, which means to seek His will and do all things that He has commanded us after the example of God's Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ. This sanctification process will enable us to pass through the veil to enter the ultimate cathedral and home, which is His presence, where all things will be revealed to us.

Passing Through the Veil

To introduce the last song, I need to relate an experience when I was younger. One summer I was working in a chocolate factory in the afternoon and evening, during which I had a goal to read the standard works all the way through. As I did, I would often sit outside our apartment in the morning. I vividly remember the summer thunderstorms that would appear and as I waited in awe for lightning to strike, I would pause in my reading to relish the ominous clouds and the smell of ozone. I have no words to describe the feeling deep in my soul about the power and greatness of God that manifested in the skies. In those moments, the Holy Ghost told me not only that what I was reading was true, but that I had a part to play in His plan.

Years later, when I heard the song Lightning Crashes for the first time, those memories of watching thunderstorms all came back to me. I felt the chorus was written by someone who had experienced feeling the Spirit, but, like most, struggled to put it into words.

Oh I feel it, coming back again

Like a rolling thunder chasing the wind

Forces pulling from the center of the earth again

I can feel it

The power of this description is enhanced by the verses that tell of a new mother giving birth, an old mother passing away, and a new child opening her eyes. I heard this song before I knew personally about the momentous, sacred nature of birth and death, events that signal spirits passing through the veil of mortality. But less than a year later, words cannot describe the joy I felt witnessing the miraculous beauty and light present as my wife gave birth to our first child, Sarah.

When we are born into this mortal life, our bodies and spirits are joined in a process that involves a fair amount of water and blood. To be honest, and those who have participated in any form will acknowledge, it is rather messy. Thankfully, the joy of bringing a precious spirit to this mortal life overpowers the process. However, it also brings us into a world where we are corruptible, natural, carnal and as we become accountable, sinful. The Lord told Adam:

That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory (Moses 6:59-60).

In this rebirth, we become like innocent children again, using the same elements of water and spirit that were present when we were born into this mortal life, except this time, we are born again into the kingdom of heaven (John 3:3-7). We recognize that this is only possible through the Atonement of Christ, who offered his body and blood as a sacrifice for us. The Only Begotten is the only one who could perform the Atonement and redeem us (“Atonement,” Bible Dictionary). And so, after we are born again of water and of the Spirit, we recognize that we must continue to be cleansed by His blood.

For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified (Moses 6:59-60).

Physical birth and spiritual rebirth have an incredibly important connection with the veil. The veil represents several things, but one meaning is the symbol for a separation between God and man (“Veil,” Guide to the Scriptures). When we are born to the earth, we pass through the veil of mortality and are subject to death and sin, making the separation from God permanent. However, through His atoning power, Jesus Christ overcomes or rends the old veil of separation, replacing it with himself as the new veil through which we may return to the presence of the Father (Matthew 27:51). An impermeable layer becomes a welcoming one, with arms outstretched inviting us to come unto Christ, and through Him become sanctified to enter into God’s presence (3 Nephi 9:14).

From Hebrews 10:

The Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: … This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith. (Hebrews 10:15-22)

And so with unshaken faith in Jesus Christ, making covenants that He has mediated (2 Nephi 2:27-28), as well as walking on the covenant path which is the way He has prepared (John 14:6), we can be like the brother of Jared “who could not be kept from within the veil. … The Lord [will] not withhold anything from [our] sight; wherefore he [will show us] all things” (Ether 12:19-21), including ultimately His own face.

For those of you who have received your endowment at the temple, this scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants should have special meaning to you as you think of approaching the Father and passing through the veil that is Jesus Christ.

Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. (D&C 88:63)

We should seek for these thunderous, sacred moments in our lives, such as in the temple or other times where the living and the dead joyously meet. When we diligently seek, the parting of the veil will be like lightning crashing, revealing the mysteries of God to our view (D&C 110).

Concluding Thoughts

For the next year, our ward focus will be on the gift of the Holy Ghost, seeking and receiving revelation, and how the Holy Ghost sanctifies us through the blood of Jesus Christ. President Nelson explained perfectly why this is so important right now. He said:

Our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, will perform some of His mightiest works between now and when He comes again. We will see miraculous indications that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, preside over this Church in majesty and glory. But in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.

I urge you to stretch beyond your current spiritual ability to receive personal revelation, for the Lord has promised that “if thou shalt [seek], thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things—that which bringeth joy, that which bringeth life eternal" (D&C 42:61) Oh, there is so much more that your Father in Heaven wants you to know” (Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Times).

My challenge to you this year is designed to stretch you “beyond your current spiritual ability” so that your hearts will be prepared for what your Father in Heaven wants you to know in your personal lives, and what will be revealed through His servants, the prophets.

Seek to yield your heart to God by attending the temple more regularly than once a month. Ask in prayer how you can make this possible and follow the resulting promptings of the Holy Ghost. Stretch yourself even further by learning how you can find ancestors' names to take to the temple and seek out your kindred dead.
Keep a journal or notes as you search the scriptures and the words of living prophets. Frequently review it. Make special note of:
- Principles of revelation and sanctification
- What you are learning from the Holy Ghost
- What is God’s will for you
- How you will act on what you have received

While performing this challenge, I urge you to search your heart and consider its application to your calling, and most especially your ministering assignments. As you do so, I promise you the blessings of our Heavenly Father to understand your true identity as a child of God, to have more frequent sacred moments in your home and in the temple, and to receive constant, personal revelation beyond any time ever before.

To the youth of this ward: Some of you have begun seeking and yearning. Others of you are still occupied with things of this world only. But you have a stream of eternity that your Father in Heaven wants to open so it can flow to you constantly. This is a precious gift and opportunity you should not take for granted. Others are only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it (D&C 123:12). But you, on the other hand, have these blessings right in front of you. You can humble yourselves now or wait until you are compelled to be humble (Alma 32:4-16). By humbling yourselves now you will learn the attribute which will enable you to see God. Please trust the Lord. Let Him direct your paths (Proverbs 3:5-6). Let Him lead your life. Leaning to your own understanding means you trust yourself more than the one who desires to grant you blessings greater than you have sight to see (1 Cor 2:9).

I chose these songs to show that the Holy Ghost can speak to you in the ordinary things in your life if you are seeking and striving to listen. Every time I hear them now, I feel grateful to God for revealing more of Himself. To “always have the Spirit to be with [you]”(Moroni 4) means that while playing sports, dancing, doing schoolwork, at a job, at home with the family, with friends, as well as in church, in prayer, and reading the scriptures, the Holy Ghost can and will reveal to you that which God would have you do, line upon line, until ultimately, through the power of Christ, and by doing that which is revealed to you, you will not be able to held within the veil (Ether 12:18-21).

And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things. Therefore, sanctify yourselves that your minds become single to God, and the days will come that you shall see him; for he will unveil his face unto you, and it shall be in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will. (D&C 88:67-68)

I testify these things are true. I am so grateful to my Savior Jesus Christ, the One who heals pain and regret and opens up the beauty of generations of family, bound together in love and the glory of His Father, whom He loved so that He willingly gave His life. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.