Unlock Your Faith – Receive Hearts that Feel, Ears that Hear, and Eyes that See 

Unlock Your Faith – Receive Hearts that Feel, Ears that Hear, and Eyes that See

What an awesome responsibility it is to speak to you on such a remarkable day as Easter Sunday.

It’s interesting because about a month ago a very good friend of mine who was preparing his talk on the Savior’s atonement for his state conference, asked me to help put together some material for him. 

So when I got asked to give this talk, I already had some material that I could use for it. But a couple days ago, I went to bed but I simply could not sleep. My mind was racing and the spirit ended up taking my talk in another direction. I am very excited about the direction the spirit took it though.

This talk will likely will be different from any other Easter Sunday talk you have heard before, and yet I hope and pray that it will be a very memorable talk for you. 

To set the stage for my talk I want to share just a couple of things with you and then we will apply them, here together. 

Unlock Your Faith – With Your Imaginations 

The first thing I want to share is a quote from the April 2021 conference, titled You Can Gather Israel by Ahmad S. Corbitt. 

“Please use your imaginations to increase faith in Christ, not ruin it.”

I have thought a lot about that quote since that time. We get to actually choose what we use our imaginations and our dreams for. My daughter Cessilee, cracks me up, because she uses her imagination all day long to think about and dream about horses. Her imagination has created a love for horses and she researches them and it is crazy how much she now knows about horses. My little man, Eyring, uses his imagination to learn about and perform all kinds of magic tricks and he recently learned how to throw playing cards. He can throw a card through paper and stick  them into a stalk of celery, and all of this has come about because of his vivid imagination. 

Now, consider, that if we would put as much time and effort into using our imaginations to learn about and and to get to know our Savior, Jesus Christ, as Cessilee or Eyring put into their hobbies, oh how our lives would be changed. 

Unlock Your Faith – With Your Meditations

The next piece is a quote from Pres. David O. McKay:

“I think we pay too little attention to the value of meditation, a principle of devotion.

In our worship there are two elements: one is spiritual communion rising from our own meditation; the other instruction from others, particularly from those who have authority to guide and instruct us. Of the two, the more profitable introspectively is meditation.

Meditation is one of the most secret, most sacred doors through which we pass into the presence of the Lord” (Pres. David O. McKay, “Consciousness of God: Supreme Goal of Life,” Improvement Era, June 1967, pp. 80–82; emphasis mine).”

I absolutely love that, “spiritual communion rising from our own meditation” which “is one of the most secret, most sacred doors through which we pass into the presence of the Lord.” I don’t know about you but that gets me super excited. Meditation has many forms and pondering is one of them. Think about it, how often do the scriptures and our latter-day prophets counsel us to ponder upon the things of the Lord. Also, prayer is an important form of spiritual communication. 

Now, consider that if we were to use our meditations, ponderings, and prayers, to learn about and and to get to know our Savior, Jesus Christ, oh how our lives would be changed.

Unlock Your Faith – With Your Mental Exertions

The Next piece is found in the Lectures of Faith, Joseph Smith says this: “when a man works by faith he works by mental exertion instead of physical force. It is by words, instead of exerting his physical powers, with which every being works when he works by faith.”

For those that don’t know what mental exertion means, it means mental work. We work hard in our minds to think about something, which leads to action in that thing. 

Hopefully, is it coming together for you now? Our imaginations operate by mental exertion. Our meditations and ponderings and prayers operate by mental exertion. And all of these can be very powerful in building our faith in Jesus Christ, if we will but use them for that purpose. To drive this point home, just a little deeper, let me share just a little bit more from Joseph Smith in the Lectures of Faith:

If men were duly to consider themselves, and turn their thought and reflections to the operations of their own minds, they would readily discover that it is faith, and faith only, which is the moving cause of all action in them; that without it both mind and body would be in a state of inactivity, and all their exertions would cease, both physical and mental.

Take a minute to take that in, isn’t that just powerful?

He continues:

11. Were this class to go back and reflect upon the history of their lives, from the period of their first recollection, and ask themselves what principle excited them to action, or what gave them energy and activity in all their lawful avocations, callings, and pursuits, what would be the answer? Would it not be that it was the assurance which they had of the existence of things which they had not seen as yet? Was it not the hope which you had, in consequence of your belief in the existence of unseen things, which stimulated you to action and exertion in order to obtain them? Are you not dependent on your faith, or belief, for the acquisition of all knowledge, wisdom, and intelligence? Would you exert yourselves to obtain wisdom and intelligence, unless you did believe that you could obtain them? Would you have ever sown, if you had not believed that you would reap? Should you have ever planted, if you had not believed that you would gather?… In a word, is there anything that you would have done, either physical or mental, if you had not previously believed?…

12. And as faith is the moving cause of all action in temporal concerns, so it is in spiritual… 13. As we receive by faith all temporal blessings that we do receive, so we in like manner receive by faith all spiritual blessings that we do receive. But faith is not only the principle of action, but of power also, in all intelligent beings, whether in heaven or on earth…

Who cannot see, that if God framed the worlds by faith, that it is by faith that he exercises power over them, and that faith is the principle of power? And if the principle of power, it must be so in man as well as in the Deity? This is the testimony of all the sacred writers, and the lesson which they have been endeavouring to teach to man.

So there it is, so simple to understand. Our faith is our thoughts and what we think about and what we pursue, it’s our imaginations, it’s our meditations, our pondering, our prayers, and our silent pleading with the Father. So, the question to ask yourself is how are you using your faith? How are you using your imaginations, meditations, pondering, and prayers? Are you using them to build powerful faith and break through the veil for yourself personally, or is it time to repent and make a course correction? 

Receive Hearts that Feel, Ears that Hear, and Eyes that See

Now you are probably wondering why I spent so much time talking about faith and how to build great faith here on this wonderful amazing Easter Sunday? My intent today is to unlock your faith, and have you use your imaginations, your meditations, your ponderings, and your prayers to unlock within yourselves even greater spirituality, even greater understanding, and create unshakable belief and faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 

And when we use our imaginations, meditations, ponderings, and prayers in this way, we show forth our devotion, dedication, and desire to learn and be taught at His feet. This will unlock the gifts of the spirit, we will have hearts that feel, ears that hear, and eyes that see. A powerful example of this is President Henry B Eyring, and in a conference talk a few years back, titled His Spirit to Be with You, he shared this amazing account:

I once stood with my wife outside a tomb in Jerusalem. Many believe that it was the tomb from which the crucified Savior emerged as a resurrected and living God.

The respectful guide that day motioned with his hand and said to us, “Come, see an empty tomb.”

We stooped to enter. We saw a stone bench against a wall. But into my mind came another picture, as real as what we saw that day. It was of Mary, who was left by the Apostles at the tomb. That is what the Spirit let me see and even hear in my mind, as clearly as if I had been there:

Let’s all go with Pres. Eyring into the tomb. I don’t want you to just think about it, but instead, I want you to use your faith and really use your imaginations and put yourself into the tomb. Feel free to close your eyes as we go with Pres. Eyring into the tomb. 

First, look around. 

What do you see? 

What’s the color of the stone on the walls of the tomb? 

Put your hand on the wall and run your hand along the wall. What does it feel like, is it cold, is it dusty, what do you see, feel, and smell? 

Next, notice the bench, there on the left, with the folded linens. Right there, in that exact spot, is where the Savior of the world had just been laying there for three days.

Next, you hear sounds outside the tomb. You step outside of the tomb, and you see a woman move past you to look inside. That’s not just any woman, right there in front of you standing and crying, is Mary Magdalene. 

“But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,

“And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

“And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.

“And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.

“Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.

“Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.

“Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God” (John 20:11–17).

What are you feeling right now as you look upon the resurrected Lord? 

As you gaze into His eyes, do you feel His gaze penetrate the very fibers of your being? 

Do you feel His love wrap around you and hold you tight? 

I wish we had more time here today, but remember these feelings and become hungry for more, and come back often to partake of His love for you. 

With your faith unlocked, this scripture should take on a whole new meaning:

If thou shalt ask [and how do we ask? with our faith, using mental exertion and our words, using our imaginations, meditations, ponderings, and prayers], thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things—that which bringeth joy, that which bringeth life eternal. (Doctrine and Covenants 42:61)

And in closing, we do not have to wait for Easter Sunday to spend time with the Savior, in which time, He spent in the garden of Gethsemane, where He atoned for our sins, and on the cross, when He laid down his life for us, and in the empty tomb, where we see Him resurrected and can exclaim with joy and shout to the world that, He is risen. No, we do not have to wait until Easter Sunday, for the Lord has given us the blessing of the sacrament every single week. During which time we have the privilege and honor to spend time with the Savior. It is my hope and prayer that every week you will use your powerful faith, and your imaginations, meditations, ponderings, and prayers to walk and talk with the Savior, and spend much needed precious time with Him. It is my testimony that if we do this and if we do this often, even in our daily prayers and in your personal sacred groves, that we will be given hearts that feel, ears that hear, and eyes that see. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.