After years of not paying much attention to General Conference, I decided that I wanted to make a change.
I wanted to be someone who “loved Conference,” even though I had no idea how to get to that point.
But I figured it would take a lot of effort, so I got to work.
I spent time reviewing previous talks.
I prayed with very specific purposes beforehand.
I did a lot of work beforehand so that I wouldn’t have to run errands or anything during that weekend.
And guess what happened when General Conference weekend arrived?!
I felt so immersed in every talk that I heard!
It truly was one of the most spiritual experiences of my life, and I felt like I was hearing the Lord speak, quite literally.
There was something powerful about really PREPARING for a spiritual experience.
The Lord even warned Moses to “Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, And be ready against the third day: for the third day the Lord will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai.” (Exodus 19:10-11)
The Lord wanted the Israelites to PREPARE for the amazing spiritual experience that awaited them.
He didn’t want to just spring it on them.
He gave them three days to prepare.
Preparation takes work. It takes effort to do things ahead of time.
But Bonnie Oscarson put it perfectly when she said:
“Where much is required, much more will be given.”
We choose how much to prepare.
How much to ponder about our covenants BEFORE sacrament meeting starts.
How much to do physically and mentally BEFORE walking through the temple doors.
How much to do BEFORE we open our scriptures to study.
How much to search for intention BEFORE serving in our calling.
But I have found that the more that I choose to prepare before what I anticipate to be a spiritual experience, the more that the Spirit is poured out upon me.
Preparation is for my own benefit.
Happy Studying!
-Cali Black
