It should not surprise most of you that I am a gospel geek. And I love it. I get excited when I discover a previously unrecognized gem in the scriptures, I light up when I start to discuss the doctrines of the gospel, and treat General Conference like the Super Bowl and World Series combined. So as this past weekend brought another flood of revelation and guidance from modern prophets and apostles, you can imagine I was like a kid at Christmas.
Everyone prepares for and processes conference in their own ways, but in the past few years I would prepare a handful of concrete questions, study them, pray about them, and pay special attention throughout conference for the promptings that came.That was my intention as I began to prepare this time. I came up with a couple questions only to have them resolved or answered in another way, so my prayers began to change to simply giving thanks to my Heavenly Father for the opportunity to hear his prophets speak and to recognize guidance for my life. The incredible answers I received were humbling and... in the form of questions!
Some questions were directly said as part of the talks- "Which way do I face?", "Lord, is it I?", and "Will this make me a better person?''. Most, however, were given as quiet whispers as I listened to each talk, and usually beginning with "How will I improve (or implement)...?". Instead of a prompting to visit a specific person, some of my questions came out as "How can I better sustain and support my leaders?" and "How am I using spiritual implements to recognize spiritual truths?".
We see examples in the scriptures where the Lord answers with a question; when the brother of Jared asks how to get light in the barges, the Lord asks what he thinks should be done. The Savior constantly asked his disciples questions such as "Whom say ye that I am?". When Nephi was given the opportunity to see the vision of the tree of life, the Spirit asked, " What desirest thou?". The Lord asks us questions, not because he doesn't know the answer, but because he wants us to discover if we know the answer yet.
Just as surely as I know the Lord answers our prayers, I know He provides the right questions to help us progress in our path of discipleship. His questions are unquestionably more fine-tunes than mine were, reminding me that He knows me completely and knows of my testimony. He knows I have faith and that I am striving to draw closer to Him, and He is allowing me to discover answers in a way that maximizes growth and understanding.
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