Women of the Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can “seek spiritual strength by following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.” That is right. I do not have to wait for another person to tell me what to do. Nor am I left up to my own devices. I can gain spiritual strength by following the promptings I receive from the Holy Ghost. What are promptings from the Holy Ghost? Promptings are clues, information, or knowledge that comes to my mind and heart, as to what I should do. I have also learned that as I follow those promptings, I am never sorry that I did. I am strengthened that I know I did the right thing and good things happen. There are times that I did not follow promptings and that was always accompanied with regret.
I get gentle promptings on small things as well as big things. Learning to listen on the small things helps familiarity with promptings, and makes it easier to identify promptings when they come. Small things may be inconsequential, on the surface, but they are very important. The other day I felt prompted to check my calendar about an upcoming appointment. I did not heed the promptings of the Holy Ghost. About an hour after the missed appointment I received a call asking if I wanted to reschedule. Now, the situation involved an appointment for a hair cut, nothing earth shattering. I felt sad for my stylist because she relies on paying customers. When the seat remains empty, she is still there at work but earning nothing. Immediately, I recognized that I had a prompting I did not heed. By heeding, I could have avoided the remorse I was feeling for a working mother’s loss. I could have been spiritually strengthened by heeding, knowing that like the “sparrow that falls,” God is mindful of me. Heeding in this small thing would have strengthened me in the future by helping grow more familiar with the promptings of the spirit.
Another word for promptings of the Holy Ghost is revelation. We can invite revelation, but it comes when the Lord is ready to give it. We cannot force it.
It is not wise to wrestle with the revelations with such insistence as to demand immediate answers or blessings to your liking. You cannot force spiritual things. You can no more force the Spirit to respond than you can force a bean to sprout, or an egg to hatch before it’s time. You can create a climate to foster growth, nourish, and protect; but you cannot force or compel: you must await the growth. (Boyd K. Packer, “The Candle of the Lord,” Ensign, Jan 1983, 51)
Our “ability to hear the voice of the Spirit is dependent upon our willingness to keep the commandments.” (Mary Ellen Smoot, “We Are Instruments in the Hands of God,” Ensign, Nov 2000, 89–92) I also increase my ability to hear the voice of the Spirit by doing as the Holy Ghost prompts me. I am humbled and strengthened that God cares enough about me,as an individual that He will send me messages, via promptings from the Holy Host, to help me live and do His work. “Those promptings are a personal message from the Lord to you.” Richard G. Scott, “Promptings of the Spirit,” Friend, Feb 1994, inside front cover)
Promptings can protect us.
The promptings that come to us to flee evil reflect our Heavenly Father’s understanding of our particular strengths and weaknesses and His awareness of the unforeseen circumstances of our lives. When these promptings come, they will not generally stop us in our tracks, for the Spirit of God does not speak with a voice of thunder. The voice will be as soft as a whisper, coming as a thought to our minds or a feeling in our hearts. By heeding its gentle promptings, we will be protected from the destructive consequences of sin.
But if we ignore those promptings, the light of the Spirit will fade. (Robert D. Hales, “To Act for Ourselves: The Gift and Blessings of Agency,” Ensign, May 2006, 4–8)
I am grateful for promptings of the Holy Ghost and strengthened when I heed them.
