I’ve always been a people person. I enjoy talking with people, getting to know them, and developing meaningful relationships with them. Throughout my life, I’ve created connections with so many wonderful people, and I’m forever grateful for that. But in my quest to do so, there’s one thing I’ve learned bonds two people (whether that’s within a friendship, familial relationship, or romantic relationship) stronger than anything else: sharing a spiritual experience.
Maybe that’s why I’m still so close to the majority of my mission companions or why I’m still friends with girls that I met at Youth Conference in 2008. Perhaps it’s why I still so deeply revere my Young Women’s leaders. With each of these women, I shared a spiritual experience — and it brought us closer together and forged a powerful bond between us.
Sharing spiritual experiences is sacred and beautiful — and it’s why I think the Come, Follow Me program is so life-changing. As we share that resource with those around us — whether that’s with our parents, our spouse, roommates, or simply between us and the Savior — we will grow closer than we ever have before and learn to love and trust each other on a new level.
My Personal Experience with Come, Follow Me So Far
I’m sure many people feel like this, but I say to my husband frequently, “I don’t think any couple in the world is as in love as we are.” We are so close and our love is so deep — but even in a relationship that is already so wonderful, Come, Follow Me has enhanced our love for and appreciation of each other.
My husband and I read our scriptures together every night (just a page, so don’t be too impressed!) and pray as a couple daily, but I realized we don’t really talk about the gospel in a meaningful way all that often. Yet as we have participated in Come, Follow Me, we’ve come to know each other more fully by sharing our spiritual thoughts and insights with one another. The guiding questions and prompts facilitate thoughtful gospel discussions and allow us to contemplate the New Testament and Christ’s life, and its significance and application in relation to our own lives.
In the short few weeks we’ve been using the Come, Follow Me resource, I’ve felt my testimony and love for the Lord strengthen — and along with that, my love for my spouse has increased. As we experience spiritual moments together, the threads that knit our lives together become thicker and impenetrable. The foundation of our relationship is the Savior, and as we become more firmly rooted in His gospel, our marriage is blessed and fortified.
Consistent Effort
That bond, however, is only unbreakable as long as we are focused on Christ. I love part of the intro to Come, Follow Me found in the manual:
“But the kind of gospel learning that strengthens our faith and leads to the miraculous change of conversion doesn’t happen all at once. It extends beyond a classroom into an individual’s heart and home. It requires consistent, daily efforts to understand and live the gospel. True conversion requires the influence of the Holy Ghost.”
While Come, Follow Me has the power to enhance our spirituality and our relationships with Christ and our loved ones, we will only get as much out of it as we put into it. That means that if we are consistent and approach Come, Follow Me with the sincere desire and intent to become more converted, we will become more converted. If we go in half-heartedly though, we’re sure not to have as positive of an experience.
To read more of Amy’s articles, click here.
I know that Come, Follow Me is inspired. Its goal is deep, lasting conversion — to the gospel, but also to our spouses, children, and love ones. As we grow closer to the Lord, our righteous relationships will deepen. Christ is the tie that binds, and with Him, all aspects of our life will be blessed.
Additional Resources
For amazing resources on implementing Come, Follow Me, check out the following sites:
Third Hour – “We at Third Hour want to give you as many resources and as much content as we can to help you find your gospel-learning groove. We have resources that dive into the New Testament topics we’re studying this year, quizzes, inspirational memes, charts, coloring pages, and all sorts of stuff you’ll want to check out. The best part is, it’s totally FREE. Check it out and good luck with your new and improved home-centered gospel learning.”
Saving Talents – “To help us follow the counsel of the prophet and put more of the gospel education of our children in our homes, we’ve created short devotionals to do with young children so they can learn from the Personal Study section. We want others to be able to benefit from our work, since we know that each family has limited amounts of free time. So we decided to offer what we’re doing for free on our blog. Each day (M-F) has a song, scripture, short discussion, journal prompt, and optional activity. There is also a corresponding FHE to start off each week.”
How have you implemented Come, Follow Me in your life and within your family? We’d love to hear your ideas and insights, so leave them in the comments!
Amy Carpenter is the site manager and editor for LDSBlogs.com. She served a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Denver, Colorado, where she learned to love mountains and despise snow. She has a passion for peanut butter, dancing badly, and most of all, the gospel.
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Amy I loved this. So true. It is crazy how the spirit can bond a relationship that already feels perfect. I love my husband so very much. We will have to try readying a page every night like this.
You are SO sweet, Shawna! Thank you! And I love what you said — the Spirit really can strengthen any relationship, no matter how wonderful it already is.
Also, reading a page every night has been wonderful… Before, we tried to read a chapter every night and it just wasn’t sustainable for us. We found that when we felt the pressure to read a chapter every night, we ended up not doing anything! So reading a page has been great for us, because we actually do it!