Doctrine and Covenants 112:10
10 Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers.This time in your life is exciting and challenging. You will have many experiences that will teach you about yourself and help you to gain a better understanding of who you are and what the Lord expects of you. Your life has a purpose. You will find, over the next few years, that you do not yet fully understand your purpose and what the Lord has planned for you. I will guarantee you that your Heavenly Father has a bigger, more satisfying plan for you than you have devised for yourself. Your Heavenly Father knows your capacity, your abilities and the path you need to take in order to realize your full potential. It is your job to learn to be teachable, learn to listen to the spirit and be taught by scripture study and prayer.
The scriptures contain your answers.
John 5:39
39 ¶Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.Matt. 22:29 Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, The entire ministry of Jesus was spent in teaching a generation that had not understood the scriptures-- are we also that generation? Have the scriptures become your source for answers?
Timothy 3: hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
15And that from a achild thou hast known the holy bscriptures, which are able to make thee cwise unto dsalvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16aAll bscripture is given by cinspiration of God, and is dprofitable for edoctrine, for freproof, for correction, for ginstruction in hrighteousness:
We have been admonished to read the scriptures. We are blessed when we read the scriptures. A relationship with the scriptures allows us to be guided. We need the guidance that comes through the scriptures. In Romans 15:
4For whatsoever things were awritten aforetime were bwritten for our clearning, that we through dpatience and comfort of the escriptures might have fhope.
The scriptures are your guide. When we combine scripture study with prayer and journaling, we will find personal messages that will serve as a guide.
Your purpose.
What has God got planned for you?
The oft sung primary song "I Am A Child Of God" provides a clear and simple message that can be understood by the youngest among us but is oft forgotten as we grow. A primary child will always answer with confidence that they are, indeed, a child of God. In the song, there is the repeated plea:" Lead me, guide me, walk beside me, help me find the way, teach me all that I must do to live with Him someday". That humble pattern will yield the hoped for results. If we are willing to be led, guided and ask the Savior each day to walk beside us, we will find the way. The world would have us forget this important truth. The world would have our value tied to things of little worth. When we limit our relationsihp with our Christ, we limit our lives. We must learn to believe and follow the promise Christ gave in
Mark 10:27
27 And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.First and foremost, you are a child of God with unbounded potential. You will not be able to accomplish the things of God with the perspectives of men. When you are discouraged and forget your value and your immense worth, search the scriptures, the scriptures will point you to your worth.
Proverbs 31:10
10 ¶Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.Moses 1:39
39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.You are His work, You are His Glory. If there was only you on this earth, He would have gone to Gethsamane for one. He would have gone for you. When you are numbered among the lost and the wandering, He has often left the 90 and 9 to find you and He will do it again.
We must learn to trust in Him. He will take us by the hand and lead us.
Isaiah 12:2
2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. You are not alone in your forgetfullness regarding who you are, it is a weakness that many of God's chosen have struggled with-- you are one of God's chosen . We have many examples in the scriptures where the worth and the purposes of an individual are revealed and truly surprise the individual.
The Psalmist provides an example for each of us when we loose our conficence and forget to trust in God:
Psalms 16:1
1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trustExodus 4:10 we have a record of Moses' reaction when He finds out his assignment from God
10 ¶And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.The Old Testament had not yet been written, Moses did not have the opportunity to read about the things that he woudl accomplish in his lifetime. This was at the beginning of Moses' assignment and journey (both literal and figurative). He knew that he had shortcomings and weaknesses. He could not yet see how God could use him as an instrument.
Esther began to understand the importance of her role to save the Jews from certain death. She did not know that, by marrying the king, she was prepared and in a place where she could uniquely serve.
Ester 4
13Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews.
14For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there aenlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a btime as this?
we read of Esther's confidence in the Lord when she asks the people to fast 3 days for her and then, she would go boldly yet humbly to the king-- with a trusting attitude "if I perish, I perish"
There will be many times in your life that you will be guided to do thing that seem to be beyond your capacity. In every instance, you can expect help and guidance. When your confidence wanes and when your knees begin to buckle under your load; when you move into a place where you tell yourself it's ok to stay small, remember, God knows your yesterday, your today and He knows your future. Your future in His hands will be far beyond anything you can do on your own. Every time you allow God to guide you, you will be prepared for things to come.
I would like to share 3 examples in my own life that have led me to a firm belief in the truth that God will lead you by the hand and, even in times when, like Moses, you remind God of your weaknesses, God will show you how He will make your weaknesses into your strengths.
I was 14 when I recieved my patriarchal blessing. In my blessing, there is a phrase that indicates that my voice will be heard throughout the land. Even now, I am not certain as to the meaning of that phrase in my life, though, I have had some indications but, at that time, it was even more curious to me. To that point in my life, I had not had a succuessful speaking experience in church. When I spoke in church in my youth, because of his callings my father always was on the stand. I sat next to him in anticipation before each talk. I prepared thoroughly before the talk, practiced in front of the mirror, did everything that I could think of to prepare. When the time came for me to get up and speak, I would be overcome with fear. There were times when I stood up at the pulpit silent, except for the sounds of my sobs-- I was gripped with fear and couldn't begin-- more than once, my father fininshed my talk.. I once handed my father my talk before I got up because I had already started sobbing. This good man got up and gave my talk and tried to ease my obvious pain. Fast forward 25 years and, professionally, I have been a teacher and professional speaker-- conducinting 8 hour training sessions to crowds of hundreds in large presentation rooms. God took my weakness and my self-doubt and helped me to overcome and move to a place where I could trust Him and He could trust me to be prepared and available.
Heavenly Father prepares us.
Doctrine and Covenants 133:4
4 Wherefore, prepare ye, prepare ye, O my people; sanctify yourselves; gather ye together, O ye people of my church, upon the land of Zion, all you that have not been commanded to tarry.What are you doing to prepare yourself to answer a call to serve? How are you preparing to be ready when He needs to teach you about yourself? When you are prompted to move out of your comfort zone, are you talking yourself out of it? Are you giving yourself reasons to stay comfortable?
I have done that more times than I would like to admit. There is one example that has stung over the years as I have looked back:
Two years after I finished my bachelor's degree program, I was living in Provo teaching school. A dear childhood friend of mine, Craig Wilson, asked me if I wanted to go on a trip to Europe with him and some of his friends. It would require that I take off a few days, I believe it was a week, from my teaching job. He and his friends were going to be staying at hostels and backpacking, but he wanted me to go and accompany his mother (also a dear friend) who would be staying in nice hotels across Europe. I said no. I didn't pray about it, I didn't think about it. I had money in the bank and could have afforded it. I didnt think that I could get the time off work to go and so, I didn't. Had I prayed, I am certain the door would have been opened. I know that not because it was about Europe and travel that the Lord would have prompted me, but, because of an experience I had 5 years later.
5 years later, a different friend suggested that I go, this time to england. He was a student there at Oxford and thought that I should see the wonderful city of Oxford. remembering my regret from the last time I had such an opportunity, this time I found a way. I took 5 days off of my teaching job and gathered up the courage to get on a plane by myself to England. I navigated the London airport on my own, changed my money, found the right bus and headed to the town of Oxford. That trip changed my life and introduced me to my next step in life. Within 10 months, I made that same trip again, this time, as a student at Oxford.
My plans for me in my life were not this big. Oxford was a tremendous, intimidating, exhilerating experience that is a gift that God gave me. I got a degree, but much more importantly, I uncovered a part of myself that I did not know. I am a woman that can travel and live comfortably in other places. I am a writer. I love to write and did not know that about myself until I went to Oxford. I shared the gospel, served in the church, and found an academic drive within me that I had not previously understood.
As I drove through the city of Oxford the first day on a bus, it truly took my breath away. I knew that I was led there for a purpose. I have had this experience repeated a few other times in my life: the first time I met my husband, and the first time I was able to look into the eyes of each of my three children. These are some of the things that God had prepared for me and led me to that I had scarce imagined possible. The sacred nature of God's plan for you is real. You will have moments when you recognize that you are on your path and that He is specifically leading you on your path. The path that He has prepared for you.
I learned that there are untold blessings awaiting when I follow the guidance of the spirit. I have been led to blessings and experiences that i would not have created for myself but were uniquely designed for me.
I have been guided to most important blessings of my life. I went on the one last set up date, you need to know, I went on more than 100 set up dates, but, against my better judgement (complaining all the way) I went on this one, because I felt like I should-- and that one was different. My last set up would end in a celestial marriage. My husband is truly a light in my life and a blessing that was beyond my hopes. I had no idea what it would mean to me to have someone that always has my back-- that always has my best interest and my personal growth and his priority.
We have been guided in regards to things spiritutal and things that seemed temporal. We have been blessed as we followed.
Your Heavenly Father has a larger plan for you than you can imagine right now. You will find that plan through prayer, you will uncover it in your scripture study. You will know the message is for you when you are listening to a talk in conference and the spirit speaks to you. This is a time for you to stay more focused on the presence of the spirit in your life than you have ever done previuosly. Don't miss His whisperings. Don't go a day without Him. You cannot afford to miss this. Dedicate yourself to a study of the gospel. The church is so interested in you and knows how vital this time of your life is. As a church, we will loose 1/2 of your age group. We need you and you need the church. Remember that you need the church and that you have covenented to be here and to bring others with you. Spiritual development has to move up on your list of priorities in your life and stay there throughout your life. The world wants you to think you are avereage, normal, with nothing specific or fabulous to contribute. Your contribution will be most obvious to you when you allow for still and quiet moments. I don't know what God has planned for you, I do know it is spectacular. It will not be the same as my path, but it will be as satisfying, as difficult, as exhilierating and it will suit you. You will meet a part of you that you don't know yet. This is part of the joy that He wants you to experience. You are His child and He has a path for you.
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