Seeking Answers to Spiritual Questions

Sister Tracy Y. Browning of the Primary General Presidency, gave such an incredible message in the Sunday Morning Session of General Conference titled, “Seeking Answers to Spiritual Questions“. She spoke of many things, but what touched me the most is what she said of trust and revelation.

Sister Browning spoke of the solar system. And how our knowledge of that vast universe is changing. We move forward with the best knowledge that we have, but we are limited. She compared this to our limits that we have in our spiritual understanding and how we can grow spiritually despite these limitations.

My mind immediately went to the many times I have gone to the Lord with my own spiritual questions. There are big moments and small. Some moments truly life changing. Some brought in immense joy, like finding my eternal companion and the addition of children to our family. Some brought in pain that turned into acceptance. Some brought so much light and testimony in my life that I feel like I cannot even imagine the person I would be without it. All of these spiritual questions put me on a path for greater learning.

It’s not always been easy and I don’t think it is for any of us. Because that was never the plan. That is one of the tests of mortality. To move forward with faith and sometimes very limited understanding. And that can end in some messiness as we navigate forward and life pushes us around.

I love what Sister Browning said about learning line upon line. Sometimes I am not very patient with this approach, but I see how inspired it is. As much as I wish I could know all of the answers and outcomes to life’s difficulties, I have grown to appreciate the struggle a little. I am a different person, and I hope a better person, because of this middle part. The part inbetween the lines when we work with what we have to navigate to the next step.

Something that has helped me a lot has been writing my spiritual experiences down. I love journaling and believe strongly in all the good that it can do. Writing down my spiritual journey reminds me that the struggle is worth it. Sometimes the struggle lasts longer than I wished it did, but every time, I always see the Lord’s hand in it eventually. As I get older, it has given me confidence in times of hardship and helped me to trust that there is a greater good at play.

She shared a quote from Elder Richard G. Scott (one of my favorites!) that really resonated with me:

“This life is an experience in profound trust – trust in Jesus Christ, trust in His teachings, trust in our capacity as led by the Holy Spirit to obey those teachings for happiness now and for a purposeful, supremely happy eternal existence. To trust means to obey willingly without knowing the end from the beginning. To produce fruit, your trust in the Lord must be more powerful and enduring than your confidence in your own personal feelings and experience.

To exercise faith is to trust that the Lord knows what He is doing with you and that He can accomplish it for your eternal good even though you cannot understand how He can possibly do it.”

Prompting

Trust and have faith in the Lord’s very individual plan for my life. Trust that He will lead me by the hand and walk with me through my struggles. As I obey and live my faith, answers and clarity will come.

My Favorite Takeaways

“Heavenly Father’s plan of happiness for all of us is designed to help us progress despite our limitations and accomplish what we cannot accomplish on our own, even without a complete knowledge of all things. God’s plan is merciful toward the limitations of our humanity; provides us with our Savior, Jesus Christ, to be our Good Shepherd; and inspires us to use our agency to choose Him.

God the Father and His Son’s way of imparting Their wisdom to us prioritizes inviting the power of the Holy Ghost to be our personal teacher as we center Jesus Christ in our lives and in our faithful seeking for Their answers and Their meaning. They invite us to discover truth through devoted time spent studying holy scripture and to seek for latter-day revealed truth for our day and our time, imparted by modern-day prophets and apostles. They entreat us to spend regular, worshipful time in the house of the Lord and to take to our knees in prayer “to access information from heaven.”

Our covenant relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ signals our prevailing citizenship in God’s kingdom. And our residency therein requires aligning our life to divine principles and putting in the effort to grow spiritually.

The Lord has told us that through our obedience and diligence, we may gain knowledge and intelligence. God’s laws and commandments are not designed to be an obstacle in our life but a powerful gateway to personal revelation and spiritual education.

Reaching to elevate our obedience brings us closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ, because obedience to His laws and commandments is effectually reaching out to Him.

Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are the source of all truth and share Their wisdom liberally.

We are blessed to have Jesus Christ as our Master Healer. Our obedience to God’s laws and commandments can open the way for our Savior to provide the understanding and healing He knows we need, according to His prescribed treatment plan for us.

‘To produce fruit, your trust in the Lord must be more powerful and enduring than your confidence in your own personal feelings and experience.’ (Elder Richard G. Scott)

Dear friends, I testify that our sincere gospel questions can provide Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ with opportunities to help us grow.

I testify that placing your trust in Heavenly Father and in His prophets, whom He has sent, will help you to spiritually elevate and push you forward toward God’s expanded horizon. Your vantage will change because you will change. God knows that the higher you are, the farther you can see. Our Savior invites you to make that climb.”

FULL text and video of Sister Tracy Y. Browning’s message can be found HERE.

Other messages from the October 2024 General Conference that I found particularly impactful:

• The Lord Jesus Christ Will Come Again by President Russell M. Nelson
• The Triumph of Hope by Elder Neil L. Andersen
• Welcome to the Church of Joy by Elder Patrick Kearon
• Aligning Our Will with His by Elder Ulisses Soares
• O Youth of the Noble Birthright by Brother Bradley R. Wilcox