David O. McKay said,
There are, however, two conditions which may justify a truly Christian man to enter–mind you, I say enter, not begin–a war: (1) An attempt to dominate and to deprive another of his free agency, and (2) Loyalty to his country. Possibly there is a third… Defense of a weak nation that is being unjustly crushed by a strong, ruthless one…
(David O. McKay, CR, April 1942, p. 72)
Joseph Fielding Smith said,
We have often heard of guardian angels attending us and many patriarchs have spoken of such protection. There are times no doubt when some unseen power directs us and leads us from harm. However, the true guardian angel given to every man who comes into the world is the Light of Truth or Spirit of Christ. The Holy Ghost is given to faithful members of the Church to guard and direct them; theirs is the privilege, through their faithfulness, to have such guidance and protection.
(President Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation 1:54)
Boyd K. Packer said,
We may foolishly bring unhappiness and trouble, even suffering upon ourselves. These are not always to be regarded as penalties imposed by a displeased Creator. They are part of the lessons of life, part of the test. Some are tested by poor health, some by a body that is deformed or homely. Others are tested by handsome and healthy bodies; some by the passion of youth; others by the erosions of age. Some suffer disappointment in marriage, family problems; others live in poverty and obscurity. Some (perhaps this is the hardest test) find ease and luxury. All are part of the test, and there is more equality in this testing than sometimes we suspect.
(Boyd K. Packer, CR, Oct. 1980, p. 29)
Ezra Taft Benson taught,
The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ takes the slums out of the people, and then they take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature…Yes, Christ changes men, and changed men can change the world. Men changed for Christ will be captained in Christ…Finally, men captained by Christ will be consumed in Christ. To paraphrase President Harold B. Lee, they set fire in others because they are on fire. Their will is swallowed up in his will. They do always those things that please the Lord. Not only would they die for the Lord, but more importantly they want to live for him. Enter their homes, and the pictures on their walls, the books on their shelves, the music in the air, their words and acts reveal them as Christians. They stand as witnesses of God at all times, and in all things, and in all places…When we awake and are born of God, a new day will break and Zion will be redeemed.
(Ezra Taft Benson, Conference Report, October 1985, pp. 5-6)
Ezra Taft Benson taught,
The plaguing sin of this generation is sexual immorality. This, the Prophet Joseph said, would be the source of more temptation, more buffetings, and more difficulties for the elders of Israel than any other.
(President Benson, A Witness and Warning, p. 74; JD 8:55)
Joseph Smith said,
That which is wrong under one circumstance, may be, and often is, right under another. God said, “Thou shalt not kill;” at another time He said, “Thou shalt utterly destroy.” This is the principle on which the government of heaven is conducted–by revelation adapted to the circumstances in which the children of the kingdom are placed. Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may not see the reason thereof till long after the events transpire….
Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 256
Dallin H. Oaks taught,
The Spirit of the Lord is not likely to give us revelations on matters that are trivial. I once heard a young woman in a testimony meeting praise the spirituality of her husband, indicating that he submitted every question to the Lord. She told how he accompanied her shopping and would not even choose between different brands of canned vegetables without making his selection a matter of prayer. That strikes me as improper. I believe the Lord expects us to use the intelligence and experience he has given us to make these kinds of choices.
(Dallin H. Oaks, “Revelation,” Speeches of the Year, 1981, p. 26)
Ezra Taft Benson taught,
“One of the trials of life is that we do not usually receive immediately the full blessing for righteousness or the full cursing for wickedness. That it will come is certain, but often times there is a waiting period that occurs, as was the case with Job and Joseph. In the meantime the wicked think they are getting away with something. The Book of Mormon teaches that the wicked “have joy in their works for a season, but by and by the end cometh, and they are hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence there is no return.”
(President Benson, CR, April 1988, p. 5)
Spencer W. Kimball taught,
“The gospel of Jesus Christ magnifies the importance of the body and the dignity of man. The body will come forth in the resurrection. It will be free from all imperfections and scars and infirmities which came to it in mortality which were not self-inflicted. Would we have a right to expect a perfect body if we carelessly or intentionally disfigured or damaged it? We shall have our resurrected perfected bodies through the eternities. They were given to us. We had little to do with getting them. It then becomes our duty to protect them from hazards, from mutilation, or disfigurement. We should treat them well, building them with proper foods, proper rest, proper exercise, and keep them strong, robust, beautiful, and undamaged and live on and on till called home by our Lord.”
(President Spencer W. Kimball – Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, pp. 36-37.)
Brigham Young taught,
“If I do not know the will of my Father, and what He requires of me in a certain transaction, if I ask Him to give me wisdom concerning any requirement in life, or in regard to my own course, or that of my friends, my family, my children, or those that I preside over, and get no answer from Him, and then do the very best that my judgment will teach me, He is bound to own and honor that transaction, and He will do so to all intents and purposes.”
JD 3:205
George Albert Smith shared the following story,
I remember one day I was impressed to say to a missionary who was going to a certain town where they would not let us hold street meetings:
“Now remember, give the Lord a chance. You are going to ask a favor. Give the Lord a chance. Ask him to open the way.”The young man went to that city, went into the office of the mayor, and asked if he could see him. He was going to ask if they might change the rule.
When he got there, he found that the mayor was out of town. The young man came out of the office, looked down the hall and saw on a door at the end of the hall, “Chief Constable’s Office.” He hesitated a moment, and something said to him: “Give the Lord a chance.” He walked into the chief constable’s office and told him what he had come for. When he finished the man said:
“Well, what street corner would you like?”He said: “I don’t know this city as well as you do. I would not ask for a corner that would be undesirable, or where we would block the traffic. Would you mind going with me to select a corner?”
Just think of a missionary asking the chief constable to pick a corner on which to preach the gospel!The constable said:
“Surely, I will go with you.”
In fifteen minutes they had one of the best corners in town, with permission to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ where it had not been preached on the streets since before the war [World War I]. …
(Teachings of Presidents of the Church: George Albert Smith, Chapter 17: The Strengthening Power of Faith)
George Albert Smith taught,
“The Lord has a way of accomplishing things that we are unable to do, and never asks us to do anything that he does not make the way possible. That is what he told us through Nephi. He will not require anything without preparing the way.
“’And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.’ [1 Nephi 3:7.]
“If you have something that the Lord asks or expects you to do and you don’t know just how to proceed, do your best. Move in the direction that you ought to go; trust the Lord, give him a chance, and he will never fail you.”
(Teachings of Presidents of the Church: George Albert Smith, Chapter 17: The Strengthening Power of Faith)
Jeffrey R. Holland taught,
The formula of faith is to hold on, work on, see it through, and let the distress of earlier hours—real or imagined—fall away in the abundance of the final reward.
(2012 April General Conference, The Laborers in the Vineyard, Sat. Afternoon Session – Jeffrey R. Holland)
As a new parent and father, I am encouraged by the thought that Joseph Fielding McConkie expressed in a devotional he gave on finding answers. He said,
“The fact that every member of the Church is given the gift of the Holy Ghost is the evidence that the Lord wants to reveal things to you and through you”
I find comfort in that because he not only would have me raise my children in truth and righteousness, he is willing to help me understand his will in meeting the unique needs of each child. I wanted to take a moment and consider some of the dynamics of the role of revelation in parenting. I’ll gather a few thoughts as a starting point for further consideration.
The Lord instructed the early saints,
“But I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth” (D&C 93:40).
One definition of revelation could be just that: light and truth communicated to man by God. So when I start thinking of the question, ‘how do I receive revelation for my children?’ I shouldn’t just limit my thinking to what revelation I need to receive. I can also benefit from years of years of revelation communicated through the scriptures and through living prophets. It becomes incumbent upon us, then, to seek out these words.
“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39).
Brother McConkie in the same address mentioned before articulated a similar idea with these words:
“If angels will not do for you what you can do for yourself, be assured that the Holy Ghost will not do it either.”
I think that’s important for us to understand as parents. Sometimes we feel so helpless in a situation but we haven’t fully sought through the scriptures and the modern-day revelations for understanding the doctrines and principles that we or our children need to understand in a given situation.
For example, as I considered this question of receiving revelation as a parent I realized that Elder Bendar gave a recent address that is all about revelation in parenting. It is entitled “Watching with All Perseverance” and was given in the April 2010 General Conference. In the address, Elder Bendar identifies practices and patterns we can apply in our family lives that can serve as an early warning indication of troubles and challenges that might face our youth. As I reviewed the talk I realized it’s chalk full of examples of how I as a parent can be a conduit of revelation for my children and in turn these practices help me spiritually discern (revelation) the needs and concerns of my children. Some examples from Elder Bednar:
Elder Bednar encouraged us to read and talk about the Book of Mormon with our families:
Youth of all ages, even infants, can and do respond to the distinctive spirit of the Book of Mormon. Children may not understand all of the words and stories, but they certainly can feel the “familiar spirit” described by Isaiah (Isaiah 29:4; see also 2 Nephi 26:16)” (Full Address Here).
Elder Bednar continues,
And the questions a child asks, the observations a child shares, and the discussions that occur provide crucial spiritual early warning signals. Importantly, such conversations can help parents to discern what their children are learning, thinking, and feeling about the truths contained in this sacred volume of scripture, as well as the difficulties they may be facing.
A similar pattern can be found in the other exhortations that Elder Bednar extends.
One last thought, again from Elder Bednar, but from a different setting. After David A. Bendar was called to the Quorum of the Twelve, he remained for a short period of time as the President of BYU-Idaho. A member of his administration who served as a bishop of a married student ward invited him to speak at a sacrament meeting. In a BYU-Idaho devotional, Garth Hall, the Bishop shared this insight from Elder Bednar.
Elder Bednar taught,
“The World into which you students are going is degenerating so fast that what was required in the past will not be sufficient in the future to provide the necessary spiritual protection. The rapidity with which we respond to prophetic counsel will be an important source of protection.” Quoted by Garth V. Hall, “To Prepare Their Hearts and Be Prepared in All Things”, BYU-Idaho Devotional.
With so much ancient and modern-revelation at our disposal, the degree in which we engage with the revelation and how quickly we respond can further protect our families as we seek for the Celestial Kingdom of God. I know that the promises of the scriptures are true that if we seek we shall find and if we knock it shall be opened unto us. It’s my faith that this is especially true about our family, the most important social unit on earth and in eternity.
Joseph Fielding Smith taught,
“The gospel covenant is the promise of God to grant to man, through man’s obedience and acceptance of the ordinances and principles of the gospel, the glory and exaltation of eternal life. It is the Father in Heaven who stipulates the terms of the covenant. Man has no say in the matter or right to alter or annul any provision of the covenant. His duty is to accept on the terms which are presented to him from the Almighty, in full faith and obedience, without complaint or desire because of personal weakness to alter or annul, what the Father offers for man’s salvation.”
Doctrines of Salvation Vol. I. p. 152; Church News, May 6, 1939, p. 3
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