Elder Andersen explains spiritually defining memories as follows:
These experiences may come at pivotal times in our lives or in what may at first seem as uneventful happenings, but they are always accompanied by an exceptionally strong spiritual confirmation of the love of God.” He further says that “remembering these spiritually defining experiences takes us to our knees, declaring as did the Prophet Joseph: ‘What I received was from heaven. I know it, and I know that God knows that I know it
I found myself thinking back on my mission quite often this week, even before reading this talk. There were many defining moments while I served that have shaped my personal relationship with my Heavenly Father, most too sacred to share. But the specific moments that were brought back to my memory this week coincide so well with this lesson that I feel the Spirit has directed my thoughts so that I can share them with you.
I remember being on a plane on the way to the MTC in Lima, Peru. My stomach was turning as the reality of what I was doing set in. I felt a little crazy for setting out to a foreign land to talk to strangers about my church. I felt scared of being completely away from my home and family. I felt guilty for having these doubts. The simple thought came to me to open my scriptures. I pulled out my scriptures and the second I opened them, without even having read a single word, I was filled with the Spirit so fully that I knew my doubts were unnecessary. I have had this chain of events repeated in various forms throughout my life, but that one on the plane is the memory I always recall in times of anxiety when I need help.
Even with that experience on the plane to Lima, a few weeks later, I found myself staring out the window of the MTC while folding laundry and contemplating going out into the real world after having become comfortable within the walls of the training center. I thought, “How can I tell people what to believe when I don’t even know their lives?” That thought was soon followed by, “How can I know this church is true, while there are others who have different beliefs and also claim they ‘know’ them to be true?” Clearly and, again, simply, the answer came to me: “You don’t need to worry about what other people know. You aren’t here to make anyone believe anything. That’s not the point. You can only testify of what you know, and you know this is true.” That simple lesson has repeatedly been brought to my remembrance, not only while on my 18 month mission. It was my “Joseph Smith moment,” the one similar to what led him to say “I had seen a vision; I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it.” Like Elder Andersen, these moments made me pray, “Heavenly Father, please help me to never forget what I have just felt.”
Elder Andersen shares the story of a young girl who was on a trip when the adult driving their group’s car lost his glasses while swimming in the ocean. Without them, they had no way of returning home as he couldn’t see to drive. This was before cellphones and as such, they were in quite a predicament. One member of the party suggested they pray, and the girl felt this was a silly idea. After the prayer ended, she extended her arms to splash the others with water, and the glasses floated into her hand.
This morning, out of nowhere and before reading this talk, I was reminded of a similar experience that happened to me in my first area in Lima. I was getting ready for bed in our outdoor bathroom, which was positioned at the bottom of the stairs leading from our second-story apartment. We lived above our landlady, who was not a member and didn’t seem to have a great opinion of us. The bathroom was right outside the wall of her first-story bedroom. As I was almost finished getting ready for bed, the water shut off (as it did in that city at random times each night). I turned the shower knob to closed and went up to our apartment. I woke up before my alarm the next day and descended to steps to use the bathroom, and heard a “splosh!” as my foot hit the floor. I looked around and saw a couple inches of standing water filling the entire patio where our bathroom was. I panicked as I then noticed the shower was on and had apparently been on all night. Even though I thought I had turned off the shower, evidently I hadn’t closed it all the way and the city’s water had been turned on again sometime in the night. I knew our landlady would probably kick us out and never allow missionaries to stay there again when she saw what I had done. I woke up my trainer who ran out to assess the situation and found one single drain hole in the patio. However, the landlady had shoved a piece of wood into it to keep rats out. The wood would not budge for after several minutes of trying to pry it loose. My companion said, “Let’s pray.” I did all I could to not roll my eyes and thought, “We don’t have time to pray! We need to get this cleaned up!” But I closed my eyes while she quickly asked for heavenly help. As she finished, I reached down to give the wood one final tug and I fell backward as it came out with the tiniest amount of force. After laughing for a couple minutes, we hurriedly pushed all the water into the drain and finished mopping up the last of it right as the landlady came out of her room and said, “Good morning,” to us. That experience is brought to my memory whenever I think something is too small to pray about.
Elder Andersen teaches that it is the Savior Himself who brings these experiences back to our minds. As such, how important it must be that we pay attention! Heavenly Father has sent us each here with a unique personality and purpose. He is creating this life with us, and always takes into account who we are, how we learn, and what our strengths and weaknesses are. These personalized experiences are His way of helping us become who we came here to become.
Elder Andersen shares that “President Dallin H. Oaks, in responding to a sincere man who claimed never to have had such an experience, counseled, ‘Perhaps your prayers have been answered again and again, but you have had your expectations fixed on a sign so grand or a voice so loud that you think you have had no answer.'”
If you feel the same as this man, follow this advice from President Eyring and ask yourself: “Did God send a message that was just for me? Did I see His hand in my life or the lives of my [family]?”
I end with Elder Andersen’s inspired words: “Embrace your sacred memories. Believe them. Write them down. Share them with your family. Trust that they come to you from your Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son. Let them bring patience to your doubts and understanding to your difficulties.”
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Riverdale 7th Ward 
You must be logged in to post a comment.