Just as the Prophet Joseph Smith received revelation through direct prayer to the Lord, we must also seek to receive personal revelation, Rodger Sorensen, chair of BYU's Department of Theatre and Media Arts, told students at Tuesday's devotional in the Joseph Smith Building auditorium.
Drawing from his experiences while serving as artistic director of the Hill Cumorah Pageant near Palmyra, New York, Sorensen spoke about Joseph Smith's experiences in the Sacred Grove and emphasized the need to seek and find our own sacred groves.
"[There] we can come to know the truths of the restored gospel by listening to the Holy Spirit speak evidences to our hearts," he said.
The devotional will be rebroadcast Sunday, Aug. 3, on BYU-TV at 8 a.m. and 4 and 10 p.m. and on KBYU-TV at 6 and 11 a.m.
By committing and consecrating our lives to the gospel, Sorensen said, "our souls are strengthened and our hearts are softened," and we are prepared to receive the Lord's guidance.
Everyone can and must receive inspiration from the Lord regarding the truthfulness of the gospel, Sorensen advised students.
"Our spirits were with Heavenly Father and Jehovah as this world was created," Sorensen said. "We knew then of our Father's plan for the atonement, and that the restoration would take place in the latter days. We can know now the truthfulness of these promises as we listen to the Holy Spirit bringing these things to our remembrance."
An important part of preparing to receive personal revelation is giving service and making sacrifices for the Lord.
"There is something in service and sacrifice especially in the face of adversity that prepares the heart for hearing the Holy Spirit," Sorensen said.
"It is through engaging in mighty struggle that we are prepared to follow promptings, and our capacity to accomplish is enlarged." Sorensen said. It is then that we experience peace of mind and the assurance that the Holy Spirit will be our constant companion."
Through faith, service and sacrifice we can receive revelation throughout our lives, Sorensen promised students.
"Service and sacrifice prepare our hearts to receive the Spirit, that he may bring all things to our remembrance," he said. "Faith allows us to believe that we may see. Repeated experience with the Holy Spirit leads us to trust the language of the heart."
Writer: Alexis Plowman
