What do you want most in life? Some people might say "success" financially, with career, and with family. Others want to be "happy" and they search for it through many different means. Though it is only implied, most people want the same thing. They want inner-peace. The feeling of being completely content and filled with joy in your heart. In my own search for this feeling of peace, I have discovered that when I am following God and keeping His commandments, that feeling of the spirit is a natural result. But it only comes by being in harmony with heaven.
We all feel the spirit differently. Some people feel the spirit through their emotions and it is more physically manifest. For me personally I feel the spirit when I feel warmth in my heart or a peace in my soul. The scriptures in Galatians explained the spirit to be "love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith..." If you feel these feelings in your heart, you are feeling the Holy Ghost. That is confirmation that you are making good choices and that God is proud of you! You are living in a way that is in harmony with heaven.
Have you ever played an instrument and heard two notes played together that clash? That is a sound called dissonance. The notes are not in harmony with each other and the result is a painful noise. In life, when we don't live what we believe we have an inner feeling of "dissonance" and a lack of peace. At these times we can choose to lower our standards or turn back to God. By repenting we come back into harmony with God and our feelings of peace and the spirit once again fill our hearts. This is a constant process I have go through on a daily basis and we all have to go through because we are human and we make mistakes.
What if I can't feel peace? There have been a few times in my life when I have been filled with fear for the future or regret for the past. Those times I have lost focus on Jesus and have allowed these fears and overwhelming feelings to stay, I realize once again that I am dissonant with heaven. By doing the little things like reading the scriptures, praying, and cultivating faith in Christ, inner peace and the spirit returns to my heart. Harmony is again restored to my soul.
In my life I may not ever be "rich," own a big home, or reach all of my hopes and dreams. But I know without a doubt that I will always feel peace if I put God first. That is honestly all that I could ever want in this life. If that is what you want, I encourage you to get back in harmony with heaven and I promise you will find what you are looking for. The spirit will once again be an active part of your life and inner-peace will again be yours.
Challenge: I have a few challenges for you :)
1) This week pray that you can more clearly feel the impressions of the Holy Ghost.
2) After each of your nightly prayers, sit in silence for a minute and just listen.
3) Record impressions you receive during those "one minute" moments with heaven and your daily scripture studies.
Thank you Lindsey for publishing such a powerful "word picture" for me to understand the role of the Holy Ghost and the feelings I am constantly balancing within my personal vessel in such a clearly understandable way. I will always rember this beautiful analagy between the power of the Holy Ghost and keeping the harmony within in check in assuring I experience the most ammount of Joy and avoid unnecessary pitfalls in my life. You have a beautiful soul.
Love,
Stephanie Pope