An Outpouring of the Spirit

My oldest daughter has been friends with a young man since they began high school. He's become friends with my other kids (my 5-year-old plans to marry him at some point and tells everyone that they're "dating") and has spent time at our home. He's also friends with other LDS kids and the director of the performing arts group that he and my kids are in is a member of our ward.

We've been waiting for him to commit to baptism and I think he went through at least 13 missionaries before finally decided to get baptized. He made the decision after he heard the talks in sacrament meeting a few weeks ago (my oldest daughter was one of the speakers).

Sunday he was baptized. It was amazing. The Spirit was so strong. The director of the performing arts group (who is also one of our seminary teachers) spoke with such power and the Spirit bore witness of her words. My oldest daughter sang, "When I am Baptized," and I don't think I've ever heard her sing so sweetly and so full of the Spirit. Another young woman in the ward who he's dated also gave an incredible talk about the Holy Ghost and then the Primary kids in the audience were asked, spur of the moment, to sing, "I'm Trying to Be Like Jesus," and one of my younger daughters was asked to sing the second verse as a solo. She did an excellent job.

At the end of the service, unbeknownst to him, all of his friends from the performing arts group, most of whom are not LDS, sang, "I Heard Him Come." It sounded as if angels were singing in a heavenly choir. I can hardly describe the way those kids sang and the feelings that welled up inside of me as I listened to them. Most of these kids live very different lives and most aren't religious, but they came together to support this young man and to show their love for him. We'd be lucky to have friends like these kids.

It was an emotional service and one that will stay with all of us who attended. The Spirit testified that it was right. All whose hearts were open felt that witness. The only word I can think to describe this baptism is: glorious.

Attending this service and witnessing the outpouring of the Spirit reminded me that we are all God's children and how He must rejoice when we come unto Him. How He loves each of us. How He wants all of us to experience the joy that comes from the gospel. And, most importantly, we never know who we might influence. If we stand in judgment of others and their lifestyle choices, we will not be able to influence them or show them the light of the gospel. We never know who is searching for the truth or when we can be an instrument in the Lord's hands unless we learn to listen to the Spirit and love those around us.

I'm truly thankful for this experience. It changed me and will ever be part of me.

Through Small and Simple Means

Last weekend we baptized our eighth child. He was so excited for his baptism.

We planned the baptism and included most members of our family. Our youngest son wasn’t formally on the program, but we knew he’d be loud enough to participate in his own way . One of my daughters spoke on baptism. I was very proud of her. She brought some visual aids to complement her talk, including a tube of diaper rash cream to symbolize the pain relief that repentance brings. She also showed a white paper that represented no sins, a paper that had lots of squiggles on it to represent mistakes we make, and then told us that after baptism our sins are washed away and through repentance we can have the white paper represent our lives. She also showed a fuzzy white blanket and likened it to how the Holy Ghost feels—warm and soft. It was an excellent talk.

Another son spoke on the Holy Ghost and how it can help us in so many ways, including protecting us and teaching us the truth. He shared some quotes. I was proud of him for preparing his talk, too.

Two of our daughters sang, Scripture Power, and other daughters gave the prayers. My son was baptized by his oldest brother, who returned from his mission to Italy last summer. My husband then confirmed my son and gave him the gift of the Holy Ghost. It was such a spiritual meeting. The bishop was choked up a bit when he asked my son to stand and bear his testimony. My son said, “Being baptized feels great. I’m so happy I could be baptized.” It was such a sweet experience.

Unbeknownst to me, my son had invited his elementary school teacher. She is not a member of the Church, but she really likes my son and decided to attend because it was important to him. She actually arrived an hour early because we’d miscommunicated the time (she lives more than 30 miles away from us). As she entered the building, my children and their cousins accosted her because she’d taught some of them last year. They all snuggled up to her during the service.
My son was thrilled to see his teacher and gave her lots of hugs to prove it. I’m sure he will always remember she attended his baptism. I was impressed that she made such an effort to come. After the service, we were visiting in the foyer about the baptism. I thanked her for coming and she said, “I was glad to. You could just feel something in there.” Then it clicked. She’d felt the Holy Ghost witness to her the truth. She’d felt his presence. From a simple child’s invitation to his baptism, she experienced the Holy Ghost. What will happen from here? I don’t know, but I do know she felt the Spirit. Attending my son’s baptism was a good experience and, perhaps, it will ignite a desire in her to learn more about the gospel. At the very least, she will remember this experience with a warm feeling.

Through small and simple means, like an invitation to a baptism, great and powerful things can happen. Of course, I hope she’ll want to know more and discover the pure joy and happiness that only the gospel can provide, but for now I’m thankful she felt the Spirit. Even more, I’m so grateful my young son was inspired enough to invite her.

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The Gift of the Holy Ghost

The last part of the 4th Article of Faith states our belief in the “laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

We believe that men who hold the restored priesthood of God can bestow the gift of the Holy Ghost to baptized members of the LDS Church. The gift of the Holy Ghost is different from the Holy Ghost as a personage of Spirit. The Holy Ghost himself is part of the Godhead and is a distinct personage, but many at the same time can feel his influence. It is similar to the sun. While the sun itself stays in the sky, people in California can feel sunshine at the same time as people in New York.

The gift of the Holy Ghost means the right to his constant companionship or influence. We believe that as we strive to live the gospel by keeping the commandments, we will have the guidance that comes from the Holy Ghost. We believe that those who have not yet been baptized are not entitled to the constant companionship, but recognize that anyone can feel a prompting from the Holy Ghost from time to time.

It is the mission of the Holy Ghost to witness all truth. Whenever anything is true, the Holy Ghost can witness that to those who are sincere in their efforts to find the truth. The Bible contains records of people who experienced a witness by the Holy Ghost before they were baptized into the Church. The same is true today. When missionaries teach true principles of the gospel, those who are earnestly seeking the truth and are listening with sincere hearts will have a witness, they will know that the message they are hearing is true.

The Holy Ghost can also warn us of physical or spiritual danger. If we listen to the still, small voice we will be protected.

When I was a teenager, I was driving to a friend’s house. I had some passengers in my backseat. It was raining and the night was very dark. As I rounded a corner along an unlit road, I asked my passengers if they saw anything in the road ahead. They answered they did not. Suddenly, I felt the urge to swerve into the oncoming lane. I resisted because I could not see clearly enough to determine that the other lane was free of vehicles. Again, I was urged to swerve into the oncoming lane. I again asked my passengers if they saw anything in the road. A third time I was urged to swerve and decided to listen. Just as I entered the oncoming lane, I could see that a large, dark-colored van was stalled in my lane. Because of the angle of the van, the reflectors were not visible. I barely missed hitting that van. Unfortunately, a vehicle behind me did not have the same warning as I did, and slammed into the van. By the time I reached my friend’s house, I could hear the sirens. I realized that I had been warned by the Holy Ghost to swerve out of the way. I’m certain that had I ignored the prompting one more time, I would have killed all of us in my car.

Now, as I look around the dinner table at all of my children, I realize my purpose was to live that night so that I could provide mortal tabernacles for 10 of Heavenly Father’s spirit children. The Holy Ghost saved my life that night and has since prompted me in various situations. I am so thankful for the gift of the Holy Ghost and for the times he has intervened in my behalf. It truly is a gift to have the influence of the Holy Ghost.

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