Comfort, protection, warmth, light - and so much more

John 14:16-17

And I will pray to the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; Even the spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

I have been asked to speak at a baptism of an 8-year-old boy named Michael who I taught in Primary for a few months this past summer.  I was asked to speak about the Gift of Holy Ghost which is given by the laying on of hands following his baptism.  He is also confirmed a member of the church at that time.  In the process, I found this picture and it touched my heart and brought me to my blog about mission miracles.

My enthusiasm when I said "yes" was probably a little overwhelming to his father.  Here's why it meant so much to be to be asked to speak:

*I love Michael.  I love his family.  I am so grateful to be asked to be a part of this special day.

*I have been studying Preach My Gospel Lesson 3 which discusses the the first principles and ordinances of the gospel.  Over a week ago I began studying with some depth about the Holy Ghost.   I have studied and taught the scriptures for many years.  But I have learned so much about the purpose and nature of the Holy Ghost.  Almost everything I learn feels brand new!  (Don't worry, I won't share all of this in my 3-5 minute talk at the baptism).

*I picked up the Ensign for October to finish reading some of the articles I had missed and as I turned the page to the next article, it was entitled:  "The Sacred Roles of the Holy Ghost."  You can check out the entire article at this link:

https://www.lds.org/ensign/2014/10/the-sacred-roles-of-the-holy-ghost?lang=eng

*I have felt lost and alone off and on for months now.  I know I'm not lost and I know I'm not alone.  After studying the scriptures and words of the prophets and then reading this article I have some peace with my current circumstances.  But as I thought of Michael and how I could share my feelings about the Holy Ghost, I remembered some of the things I love the most about him:

1.  Michael wasn't an attention seeker in class.
2. He answered questions in class when called upon or he would raise his hand when the question was for the entire class.
3.  When it was time to share something that had happened the week before, he would think for awhile and then might or might not share something depending on what had happened the previous week.  He made the decision to share or not to share thoughtfully.
4.  Michael is soft spoken.  When he spoke in class the other children in the class would say "shhhhh.  Michael has something to say." And then we would all carefully listen to his soft words.

As I reviewed these particular qualities they are not unlike how the Holy Ghost works in my life. Think about it - I'm not going to explain.  I am pretty different than Michael:  I am attention seeking, I would answer every question in class if I could get away with it, I always have something to share about my week (usually lots and lots of somethings), and I don't think most people would describe me as soft spoken.  They might say "shhh...Janice might quit talking if we listen to her for a minute" but it probably wouldn't work.

Hmmm..... thank goodness I love diversity and find joy in our differences, huh?  We aren't all the same, but we can certainly learn from each other.  And I believe I learned some things from Michael that have helped me understand the nature, purpose, roles, qualities of the Holy Ghost.

The Holy Ghost can be a protector, comforter, teacher, revelator, sanctifier (see the article link above)... a light in a dark world, warmth ... I saw the following posted on Facebook this morning.   

In 2 Corinthians and Ephesians Paul speaks of the spirit of the Lord's earnest.  While studying this idea I found the following int he Bible Dictionary:  the Lord gives us His Holy Spirit in this life as a foretaste of the joy of eternal life.

Doctrine & Covenants 88:33 I am reminded:  For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift?