The Gifts of the Spirit President George Q. Cannon Great Salt Lake Tabernacle, November 26, 1893
How many of you, my brethren and sisters, are seeking for these gifts that God has promised to bestow? How many of you, when you bow before your Heavenly Father in your family circle or in your secret places contend for these gifts to be bestowed upon you? How many of you ask the Father, in the name of Jesus, to manifest Himself to you through these powers and these gifts? Or do you go along day by day like a door turning on its hinges, without having any feeling upon the subject, without exercising any faith whatever; content to be baptized and be members of this Church, and to rest there, thinking that your salvation secure because you have done this? I say unto you, in the name of the Lord, as one of His servants, that you have need to repent of this. You have need to repent of your hardness of heart, of your indifference, and of your carelessness. There is not that diligence, there is not that faith, there is not that seeking for the power of God that there should be among a people who have received the precious promises we have. Instead of the sick being healed, why, it is as much as you can do to get faith to believe that the administration of an elder will be attended with effect. There is not that seeking for the gift of healing and for the gift to be healed that there ought to be among the Saints. And so with our other gifts and graces that God has places in His church for His people. I say to you that it is our duty to avail ourselves of the privileges which God has placed without our reach. If we have done wrong, repent of our wrong and feel after God, and not be satisfied til we have found Him, and He hears and answers us, and He speaks by His divine power in our hearts, bearing testimony to us in such a manner as cannot be doubted that He hears us, that He is near to us, and that He is watching over us and ready to bestow upon us all the blessings that are necessary for our happiness here and hereafter.
I feel to bear testimony to you, my brethren and sisters, just as these prophets have done, that God is the same today as He was yesterday; that God is willing to bestow these gifts upon His children. I know that God is willing to heal the sick, that He is willing to bestow the gift of discerning of spirits, the gifts of wisdom, of knowledge, and of prophecy, and other gifts that may be needed. If any of us are imperfect, is is our duty to pray for the gift that will make us perfect. Have I imperfections? I am full of them. What is my duty? To pray to God to give me the gifts that will correct these imperfections. If I am an angry man, it is my duty to pray for charity, which envieth not --so with all the gifts of the Gospel. They are intended for this purpose. No man ought to say, "Oh, I cannot help this; it is my nature." He is not justified in it, for the reason that God has promised to give strength to correct these things, and to give gifts that will eradicate them. If a man lack wisdom, it is his duty to ask God for wisdom. The same with everything else. That is the design of God concerning His church. He wants His Saints to be perfected in the truth. For this purpose He gives these gifts, and bestows them upon those who seek after them, in order that they may be a perfect people upon the face of the earth, notwithstanding their many weaknesses, because God has promised to five the gifts that are necessary for their perfection. Let us seek for these gifts.
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"There is order in the way the Lord reveals His will to mankind. . .we cannot receive revelation for someone else's stewardship." L. Tom Perry
I know what I've been told in blessings what some of them are. I KNOW what one is and have experienced it many times. Actually, there are two that are that way. One is just less obvious to me.
I have one that I didn't recognize as a blessing until I got married. Another that I'm just recently recognizing but I'm not sure how to properly use it 100% of the time.
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"There is order in the way the Lord reveals His will to mankind. . .we cannot receive revelation for someone else's stewardship." L. Tom Perry
I have a couple or three, but one is beyond all for me and has made me and placed me where I am. Don't understand why I have it, but it has literally been my salvation and my guide.
Is it irreverent to speak about those which one has experienced? Seems like it might be a testimony enhancer?
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Lo, there I see my mother, my sisters, my brothers Lo, there I see the line of my people back to the beginning Lo, they call to me, they bid me take my place among them In the halls of Valhalla, where the brave may live...forever
I think it depends. There are sacred things given to individuals that are for individuals. Talking about them may or may not build testimony... and all such things require the Spirit, so if you don't have a spiritual gift to be uplifting in your conversations, then chances are, talking about them, probably won't benefit anyone. :)
--Ray
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I'm not slow; I'm special. (Don't take it personally, everyone finds me offensive. Yet somehow I manage to live with myself.)
I know the ones that are discussed in my PB. But how they will be "realized" is sometimes still a mystery.
I was in a RS mtg. once and this was the topic. Pretty soon it degenerated into something like, "Baking bread... is that not a gift?" Then someone else would pipe in, "Staying calm... is that not a gift?" Yes, you know where this is going... Coco snorts right out loud. She luckily could cover it up with a coughing jag and exited the room. Yikes, people. Where some of this doctrine comes from, I just don't know. Well, actually I do.
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Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
No, all that will accomplish is that Mr Coco will love it when you do the laundry.
I stopped hating laundry when I got a decent laundry room. Having a nice big counter top to fold clean clothes on made a world of difference in my enjoyment of that particular task.
Anyone else see the irony in Coco mentioning women in RS making comments about baking being a gift and the lesson going off track with how the thread went?! Hmmmm?!
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Lo, there I see my mother, my sisters, my brothers Lo, there I see the line of my people back to the beginning Lo, they call to me, they bid me take my place among them In the halls of Valhalla, where the brave may live...forever
Jen- about the staying calm- i think staying calm might come under having a gift of patience, ie you have been blessed w/that aspect (and I'm sure others) of patience.
Oh, wow. There it is again. Suddenly when I'm focused on something it's everywhere. Does that ever happen to you? You buy the red car and now everyone has a red car type thing. All of a sudden you guys all really stink at spelling. How did I not notice this before? I'm practicing patience with you all right now.
See me practicing patience? See?
Feels more like a skill, but I'm practicing it alright. Oh yeah.
Mocking on the other hand feels more like a talent. Something I need not practice. Sort of just something I brought with me from the Pre. Was already here at birth and didn't need much cultivation. Comes naturally, if you catch my drift.
Maybe Jen, you could have special family find-your-spirichul-gift activities? Kill two birds with one stone...
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Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
"The promptings of the Holy Ghost will always be sufficient for our needs if we keep to the covenant path. Our path is uphill most days, but the help we receive for the climb is literally divine." --Elaine S. Dalton
Ok, I don't want to rein on anyone's parade, but maybe it's time for the rain of the "reign it in" jokes to stop.
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If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen! - Samuel Adams
"The promptings of the Holy Ghost will always be sufficient for our needs if we keep to the covenant path. Our path is uphill most days, but the help we receive for the climb is literally divine." --Elaine S. Dalton
Maybe I shouldn't have done that, since in my role as moderator what I say is considered official. I was mostly being silly, although I do think that the joke is stale now.
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If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen! - Samuel Adams
I'm a teaser too, but sometimes it seems to me that my habit of "I will mock you to show my affection" can get a little whacked. So I try to rein it in.
And teasing is a multi-generational thing in my family as well.
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They might not look it, but bunnies can really take care of themselves.
Yeah, when I pull your hair, Coco, you'll know I'm just trying to annoy you.
Gary in Kindergarten liked me and he showed it by trying to french kiss me. Gah! I think I'd rather have had my hair pulled.
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"The promptings of the Holy Ghost will always be sufficient for our needs if we keep to the covenant path. Our path is uphill most days, but the help we receive for the climb is literally divine." --Elaine S. Dalton
