How can we use spiritual experiences to gain strength in moments of doubt and uncertainty?
Years ago, I was sitting in church and singing “I Know That My Redeemer Lives.” When I sang, “He lives to silence all my fears. He lives to calm my troubled heart,” I felt encompassing peace. I knew then and I know now that those words are true. This spiritually strengthening experience has helped me overcome doubts throughout the years.
There is power in our spiritual experiences. They provide us with something that we can look back on in times of need to feel reassurance. In Elder Neil L. Andersen’s talk “Spiritually Defining Memories,” he talks about these important, spiritually-strengthening experiences.
Photo by John Towner
As we do the things that Elder Andersen suggests, we will recognize more spiritual experiences that can strengthen us: “The spiritually defining memories from our book of life are like luminous stones that help brighten the road ahead, assuring us that God knows us, loves us, and has sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to help us return home.” Elder Andersen teaches that we should embrace our experiences, write them down, share them, remember them, and “let them bring patience to [our] doubts and understanding to [our] difficulties.” As we do our part to remember these spiritual experiences and draw on their power, we will be blessed by them.
We may feel like we don’t have these experiences, or that they are few and far between. We may feel this way because we aren’t looking for these experiences in the many small ways they can occur. Elder Andersen teaches that these spiritual experiences can come while praying, reading the scriptures, serving others, sharing our faith, attending the temple, partaking of the sacrament, listening to general conference, and keeping the commandments.
Learn more about spiritual experiences in Elder Neil L. Andersen’s talk “Spiritually Defining Memories.”
Source: General Conference
FEATURE IMAGE BY AARON BURDEN
—Rebecca Youngs, Latter-day Saint Insights
Find more insights
Take a look at Mikaela Wilkins’s article “Desperate for a Difference: Four Ways to Receive Inspiration From Heaven” to learn how to receive revelation.
Read Elizabeth Gallacher’s article “Was That the Spirit?” to learn how to recognize the Spirit.