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Like, Euhemerus, I get Daily Gems to my inbox that I often delete, but hope there are some days when it is of value. Today’s struck me hard:
Quote:Pouring Knowledge into Our MindsPosted: 25 May 2010 12:00 AM PDT“The Lord has many ways of pouring knowledge into our minds to prompt us, to guide us, to teach us, to correct us, to warn us. The Lord said, ‘I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart’ (D&C 8:2).”And Enos recorded, ‘While I was thus struggling in the spirit, behold, the voice of the Lord came into my mind again’ (Enos 1:10).”
Boyd K. Packer, “Prayer and Promptings,” Ensign, Nov. 2009, 45My question is, do you think the Holy Ghost can work through yourmindonly…or would it always be through your mindandyour heart ? Has anyone experienced this, or do we dismiss spiritual guidance for things that come to mind if we don’t feel it in our heart?
I’d be interested to hear people’s thoughts on this, or if you have some sources that you can reference for me to read on this.
Absolutely. More of my experiences with the Spirit have occurred through what I might call “sudden enlightenment” or actually hearing words in my mind than through a feeling in my heart. There are things I know in my head. There are things I feel in my heart. When I know something in my head, it is simply knowledge. When I feel something in my heart, it is simply a feeling. When I get it in both places, usually at the same time, I finally “get it.” That is how it works for me. What I know is that we each need to find the way it works for us. Good luck on that journey. Sorry to split hairs here but IMO your mind is your heart. We think there’s a division between the intellectual dispassionate side and the emotional but it’s all part of the same package and that somehow the Holy Ghost is involved. Some things will trigger emotion and a response that’s less than reasoned and others will seem suited to the intellect. Anything that promotes a physical response that I’ve felt in the past when stirred emotionally I see as just that and try to take it with some skepticism. All I can say is that if you feel you can ascribe either to the “Spirit” then that’s ok but what then is the outcome or result. That’s the bottom line to me. I would really like to split hairs on this, but I will not. I have had responses come to me as Ray has. Clear words I seem to hear in my mind and I become confident with the direction I could take.
I have also had the mind and heart connection that emcompasses both the intellectual and feelings. When the response comes in that manner, I am equally confident of the path to take.
Whether this is of the Spirit or my own ramblings is not as important to me as the fact that I have gained needed clarity.
Symboro wrote:I have had responses come to me as Ray has. Clear words I seem to hear in my mind and I become confident with the direction I could take.
What about when a scientist follows the scientific method and discovers through thought and reason some new discoveries?Would you all agree or disagree the spirit is involved in this process?
I have had several powerful spiritual experiences in my life. One came when I was trying to figure out how to write the final ending to my book. First, thoughts came to my mind that were very unexpected. I was very confused and frustrated at the time. As I was typing out the thoughts which were clear answers to prayer, my physical body and my emotions felt like something was coming over me. It was like warm water being poured over my whole body from head to toe. Then I felt this amazing joy, and love that filled my whole being. It was a heavenly experience and I never wanted it to stop. The tears of comfort and joy just flowed and my whole body tingled like when you hear the Hallejuhah Chorus. One other experience I had when I was so depressed and pouring out my soul to God was with thoughts to my mind which gave me peace, and then a feeling like the Savior was there surrounding me with his arms and a knowing that he understood my suffering. So, mind and heart are both involved for me. Heber13 wrote:Symboro wrote:I have had responses come to me as Ray has. Clear words I seem to hear in my mind and I become confident with the direction I could take.
What about when a scientist follows the scientific method and discovers through thought and reason some new discoveries?Would you all agree or disagree the spirit is involved in this process?
I was just telling my husband, who is a research scientist with a PhD in neuro-anatomy, about this thread. He said that anyone who is a research scientist and gets ideas or thoughts to his mind, also becomes very excited and emotional which drives him to seek further. He said that he thinks that just like it takes the brakes, gas pedal, or steering wheel to drive, we need both the mind and the heart to work effectively.
Sometimes I get such responses. Other times, it seems to fool around with me. I often get directed to appropriate scriptures in this way, but sometimes they’re chapters and verses which don’t exist. Heber13: I don’t get why a scientist following scientific methods and using thought and reason has to exclude the possibility of emotions or feelings also being used in the process. Are we really able to sort out thinking and emotions so clearly and easily? Are they mutually exclusive? If you have thinking you cannot have emotions involved in the process, or vice versa? For me, that is a very limited view of our abilities. It seems reasonable that they both, at the same time, might be able to push us in new directions.
The question about the spirit being involved does not concern me. If it did, I might want to know if the scientist asked for spiritual input. My view is somewhat different. What is of importance to me is the fact that discoveries were made that could have an impact on humanity. The journey is often as important as the arrival.
Symboro wrote:Are we really able to sort out thinking and emotions so clearly and easily? Are they mutually exclusive? If you have thinking you cannot have emotions involved in the process, or vice versa?
No, I agree with you…they should not be seen as mutually exclusive. I guess I was thinking that many times people struggle with faith because they have more confidence in logic or scientific proof…yet can’t spiritual influence and emotion and faith all coincide with logic and scientific proof? I don’t think they are mutually exclusive.Interestingly, there was some information on this site that quotes:
Quote:A decade or so ago, many researchers believed emotions, the feelings usually associated more with the heart than the head, couldn’t be measured or studied in laboratory experiments. Researchers lacked instruments, and what’s more, most scientists didn’t recognize the far-ranging and long-lasting effects emotions can have on peoples’ health.
More recently, though, hard scientific scrutiny of emotions has dramatically come into its own due in large part to a critical mass of researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Today, nearly two dozen scientists approach the study of emotions using the most advanced, non-invasive technology available to capture highly revealing images of the living brain responding to emotions.
http://www.news.wisc.edu/packages/emotion/http://www.news.wisc.edu/packages/emotion/” class=”bbcode_url”> I think knowledge about central beliefs comes to both the heart and mind. They are too important to be left to the heart alone. But the mind is less important in this duet — one doesn’t need to necessarily understand it, one needs to just accept it in your mind; there needs to be an absence of wrong-ness about it.
On issues that are less central, the mind is enough. As an example, I had one mind-only revelation years ago. D&C121 talks about righteous use of the priesthood leading to your “kingdom flowing unto you without compulsory means”. It dawned on me that the scripture was teaching us how to instill intrinsic motivation in others to do good. To do good for its own sake, without being paid, bribed, threatened, punished or goaded into doing good. And this comes only when people WANT to live the gospel. that will be one charactistics of the Celestial Kingdom — people will do good because it’s part of their character, and possibly, not other reason.
It changed my thinking about my role as HPGL, and I eventually had the most successful quarter of planning and execution where my quorum and assistants did all the work; my role was in setting direction and getting them resources.
I learned a method of motivating the brethren that was consistent with D&C 121, and their righteous behavior flowed until me with very little follow-up. And certainly no goading. It was an expression of their character.
But I digress — in this case, it was a mind-only revelation, and its truth was confirmed by the fact that it led me to a way of planning and execution that actually worked…..
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