We all have spiritual experiences in our lives that help us know that God loves us and knows us. They may come in extraordinary circumstances or ordinary one but they will always come with a powerful spiritual confirmation so that we know and that we know that God knows that we know. Elder Andersen called these defining moments or sacred memories.
Where in the Book of Mormon did it tell of a people who were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost and “they knew it not”?
What defining moments has Laura set aside so that she can choose not to believe?
As you willingly acknowledge and treasure these sacred moments, more and more will come to you.
Eighteen years after the First Vision, the Prophet Joseph Smith wrote an extensive account of his experience. He had faced opposition, persecution, harassment, threats, and brutal attacks. Yet he continued to boldly testify of his First Vision: “I had actually seen a light, and in the midst of that light I saw two Personages, and they did in reality speak to me; and though I was hated and persecuted for saying that I had seen a vision, yet it was true. … I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it.”
I have not had the same type or magnitude of position but I have had to rely on the knowledge that “I know it and God knows that I know it.”
There is a lesson for us in the Prophet Joseph’s example. Along with the peaceful direction we receive from the Holy Ghost, from time to time, God powerfully and very personally assures each of us that He knows us and loves us and that He is blessing us specifically and openly. Then, in our moments of difficulty, the Savior brings these experiences back into our mind.
Think of your own life. Over the years, I have listened to thousands of profoundly spiritual experiences from Latter-day Saints all across the world, confirming to me beyond any question that God knows and loves each of us and that He eagerly desires to reveal Himself to us. These experiences may come at pivotal times in our lives or in what may at first seem as uneventful happenings, but they are always accompanied by an exceptionally strong spiritual confirmation of the love of God.
Remembering these spiritually defining experiences takes us to our knees, declaring as did the Prophet Joseph: “What I received was from heaven. I know it, and I know that God knows that I know it.”
These spiritually defining moments come at different times and in different ways, individualized for each of us.
I was determined to know for myself that the gospel was true. At 13 I determined to do an experiment for myself. Later I read the counsel of Alma to “experiment upon the word” and I felt that Christy was speaking to me a confirmation that He knew of my desire to know.
Another time, as a missionary I had a dream of being wrapped in the living arms of my elder brother. Again, I knew upon waking that this was a message from my Savior to help me in a challenging time.
President Dallin H. Oaks, in responding to a sincere man who claimed never to have had such an experience, counseled, “Perhaps your prayers have been answered again and again, but you have had your expectations fixed on a sign so grand or a voice so loud that you think you have had no answer.” The Savior Himself spoke of a people with great faith who “were [blessed] with fire and with the Holy Ghost, [but who] knew it not.”
That reference is in 3 Nephi 9.
You might think of your spiritual memories this way. With constant prayer, a determination to keep our covenants, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, we navigate our way through life. When personal difficulty, doubt, or discouragement darken our path, or when world conditions beyond our control lead us to wonder about the future, the spiritually defining memories from our book of life are like luminous stones that help brighten the road ahead, assuring us that God knows us, loves us, and has sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to help us return home. And when someone sets their defining memories aside and is lost or confused, we turn them toward the Savior as we share our faith and memories with them, helping them rediscover those precious spiritual moments they once treasured.
I have a lot of that to do right now.
Embrace your sacred memories. Believe them. Write them down. Share them with your family. Trust that they come to you from your Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son. Let them bring patience to your doubts and understanding to your difficulties. I promise you that as you willingly acknowledge and carefully treasure the spiritually defining events in your life, more and more will come to you. Heavenly Father knows you and loves you!
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