The Holy Ghost is the reason I am a practicing Latter-day Saint. Without Him, the Book of Mormon would be just another book and I would have no testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Each day I strive to feel more of the Spirit of God in my life, and to refine my ability to listen to His promptings that I might not what direction God wants me to take in my life.

I’ve talked a little bit about our pre-earth life, a time when we lived in God’s presence as spirit sons and daughters of God. When we agreed to the The Plan of Salvation, we were agreeing to be placed into a world where our fallen brother Lucifer would have the ability to tempt us to do wrong, thus preventing us from returning to live with God again one day. Our brother Jesus Christ was to be our Savior, and He would atone for our sins. God gave us a marvelous gift when He offered up His Son, but He provided yet another of His sons for us, the Holy Ghost. To put His mission very simply, the Holy Ghost is given to us to bear witness of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and to testify of the truth of all things.

Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can saythat Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. 1 Corinthians 12:3

1 Corinthians goes on to talk about some of the gifts of the Spirit, including: wisdom, knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, working of miracles, prophesy, discerning of prophecy, speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues. In the Church we are taught that all members given the Gift of the Holy Ghost are blessed with at least one of these gifts, and that we are to work to develop those gifts and use them to bless of the lives of others.

In the Church we make a distinction between what we call the Light of Christ and the Gift of the Holy Ghost. The Light of Christ is available to all men, regardless of their faith. To quote lds.org, “The Light of Christ is the divine energy, power, or influence that proceeds from God through Christ and gives life and light to all things. The Light of Christ influences people for good and prepares them to receive the Holy Ghost. One manifestation of the Light of Christ is what we call a conscience.”

The Light of Christ is like a force or a presence in our lives, unlike the Holy Ghost which is a personage of Spirit. He is the third member of the Godhead. He can only be in one place at one time, though His influence can be felt everywhere at the same time. Those who choose to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ are baptized, and then through the laying on of hands (a priesthood blessing by those with authority directly from God) are given the Gift of the Holy Ghost. If the Light of Christ makes us good, the Holy Ghost makes us great! We can only feel His power and learn from His when we keep ourselves worthy by obeying the commandments of God.

For me, the influence/whisperings/presence of the Holy Ghost feels very warm and a bit tingly. It’s a feeling that originates from the heart and spreads throughout my body. There have been times in my life when I have been doing things that are contrary to the Will of God, and I would spend many nights on my knees begging for the Holy Ghost to come back into my life. It was only when He wasn’t with me that I realized how much I valued His companionship. No matter how hard I tried though, I could never duplicate the exact feeling that I have come to identify as the Spirit of God. It is peaceful and comforting. There are many who speak of a voice testifying to them, particularly in times of distress or danger, but this has not been my experience. The Holy Ghost communicates with me through feelings, and I must listen closely to discern the intended message.

In Helaman 5 we learn of two great missionaries, Nephi and Lehi, who are out preaching the Gospel. They are captured and imprisoned for the things they are teaching, and as they continue to testify while imprisoned the earth begins to shake and a cloud of darkness overtakes their tormentors. A voice pierces through the darkness:

And it came to pass when they heard this voice, and beheld that it was not a voice of thunder, neither was it a voice of a great tumultuous noise, but behold, it was a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it did pierce even to the very soul— Helaman 5:30

Source

This is how I think of the Holy Ghost. A still voice of perfect mildness that pierces my soul. That Husband is not comfortable sharing his conversion story publicly, but each time I’ve heard him retell it, he has spoken powerfully of the moment during his lesson with the missionaries that he felt the power of the Holy Ghost speak to his soul. It was something he had never experienced before, and it changed his life forever. Those who are not baptized can feel the influence of the Holy Ghost as they seek for the truth, but it is only after we are baptized that we are given the gift of the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. I consider this to be one of the greatest gifts God has given me, next to the Atonement and Free Agency.

“The gift of the Holy Ghost, given to us by our Heavenly Father and administered by one having authority, includes the merciful promise: ‘If ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do’ (2 Nephi 32:5). Through the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost, every member of the Church can receive ‘the words of Christ’ directly (2 Nephi 32:3), at any time or place. This personal divine guidance helps us to remain valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ and endure to the end of our days. Isn’t this wonderful! “Have we not reason to rejoice?”

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Have We Not Reason to Rejoice?” Ensign, Nov. 2007, 20

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