Sister Hsu and I are excited to be learning with you as we study the Doctrine & Covenants and Church History this year.
This week, to prepare for our first days of class next week, we invite you to consider the following question and to watch one or two of the following videos:
"Am I a seeker of truth?"
Joseph Smith was.
And it is precisely because Joseph Smith was an honest seeker of truth that we even have the restored Church on the earth today. Our current leaders are likewise seekers of truth, as are I and Sister Hsu. Neither the general leadership of the Church, your parents, or your seminary teachers pretend to know everything. We're all learning and growing together. So please join us.
The Lord said, "blessed are those who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost." (3 Nephi 12: 6)
Considering that, here's another way of asking the same question stated above:
"Am I hungry and thirsty for the word of God? Am I curious about eternal truth? Do I have faith, or at least some hope, that God is able to and interested in answering my prayers?"
Soul-searching questions, aren't they?
Consider those questions as you watch this video from lds.org and hear other members of the Church share about their own spiritual journeys:
We promise you that if you want to care more about the things of God - if you want to be more hungry and thirsty - or at least want to feel so more regularly or strongly, you can be blessed to have that desire. You just need to pray for it. Try praying for that each day this week. Pray, and ask our kind Heavenly Father to help you to want to learn more, to become a more earnest seeker of truth.
We also promise you that if you come to seminary each day with that attitude of spiritual hunger and thirst, that you certainly will "be filled with the Holy Ghost," and that your experience at seminary this year will change you forever.
To further enliven within you this hunger and further prepare your mind for what we will learn this year together, we invite you watch one or more of the videos below (or read the accompanying transcript). We know this act of faith will trigger the Lord's blessing in your life, and put you on a foundation to truly be filled this year in seminary.
Enjoy ward camp!
See you there,
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Brother Mark Macdonald
Click here to read witnesses from each of the Church presidents, including President Monson
Elder Lawrence B. Corbridge at the April 2014 General Conference
Elder Bruce R. McConkie at BYU, September 3, 1978
Alexander L. Baugh at BYU, just last month, June 24, 2014