As I’ve thought about the coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, I’ve been impressed with the commotion that comes from every angle of the world around me. It’s startling. I’ve never felt so eager or expectant for His coming as I do now.
That does not, of course, mean that He’s coming tomorrow. Regardless of all the prophesied signs being fulfilled around us, I don’t believe that we need to panic. Instead, today can be a day of peace and assurance that, as the time draws nearer to Christ’s coming, we need not fear.
That can be hard to believe in current times. No fear? That ‘s kind of a bold statement. But it’s one that Christ has repeated to us over and over throughout history. And it’s a statement we need to pay attention to.
Something that occurred to me recently is that we can’t rid ourselves of sin, fear, or darkness unless we actively replace them with light, goodness, and joy. In moments of stillness, we can step back from the world and consider our standing before Christ, receive personal revelation, and seek the messages of the Holy Spirit.
Moments of Stillness
The world has long been full of commotion, noise, and distraction – even if they take a different form now than they used to. But the people of God have learned that a moment of stillness can alter a heart entirely.
In 1820, Joseph Smith stepped into a grove of trees to seek just such a moment of stillness. The Savior, Jesus Christ, often did the same thing after preaching to the throngs that followed Him. I’m guessing that many of you can think back to at least one moment of stillness that still carries deep meaning and truth to your heart today.
These are moments that remind you that you are heard by God. That His Holy Spirit has testified to you. That you knew you were loved.
There’s so much power in a moment of stillness. Meditation has become popular with good reason. But without communication with God, the full power of meditation and stillness is untapped.
When we communicate with God, when we hit pause on everything else in our lives and speak with Him, we access the powers of heaven. Those powers of heaven, of our Father in Heaven, can fill our lives with that light, goodness, and joy that we need to clear darkness from our lives for good.
And just like Joseph Smith, in a moment of stillness, we can look up into a pillar of light every day by reaching out to our Father in Heaven and strengthening our relationship with Him.
Choosing Stillness
For the last two days, we’ve been able to listen to amazing sessions of General Conference. And while there have certainly been words said that are powerful and feelings that have been memorable, I think that to get the most out of this special Conference, I need some moments of stillness.
Actually, I think these moments of stillness need to be more intentional and regular in my life going forward, and not happen only after significant days like today and yesterday.
I feel that, for me, these moments of stillness could change how I live my life. And I think that that could be true for all of us.
These moments of stillness could help us break addictions to our phones, media, and more.
We could learn what our purpose is in our Father’s work and plan.
We’ll be able to receive more personal revelation like President Nelson asked us to do just today.
And we won’t be burdened with oppressive fear that leaves us feeling helpless and weak. Instead, we will be empowered by the power of Christ’s infinite Atonement. We will recognize that our Father in Heaven cannot be limited by any circumstance we face.
These might seem like big promises to make about such a simple thing as moments of stillness. But if a moment of stillness can lead a 14-year-old boy to see the face of God and Jesus Christ, then we need to expect that God can surprise us – and probably will – with His love, grace, and power.
What if we all worked to make moments of stillness a habit built into our days and weeks by the time October’s General Conference comes around?
What would change? How would each of us change?
And what would we be able to accomplish with our Father if we were more willing to stop and intentionally listen to Him in a moment of stillness?
I want to make these moments a significant part of my life. Maybe you want that too. So let’s make a goal now to make time for moments of stillness in our weekly or daily schedules between now and October.
It doesn’t matter what those moments look like. Each one of us will have different places, times, and purposes in our moments of stillness. Find what feels right for you.
And let’s see how inviting our Father and our Savior more openly into our lives will change us.
Seeking Christ 