The Spirit that Saves Lives

About a month ago I went on a companion exchange with Elder Nelson who is serving in Lake City. I had him come down to my area in Branford for the day and I felt like we were going to have a really good experience. Well the trade off was an experience, but defiantly not what I expected. About 20 minutes into the trade off we were driving down an open country road driving about 45 mph to an appointment when out 

of no where a 1991 Chevy pickup truck pulled right out in front of us! I slammed on the brakes and laid on the horn while Elder Nelson braced for impact. It felt like everything went into slow motion. I had a feeling to turn the car a little to the right and so I did. We slammed into the side of the truck on a diagonal right in front of the trucks passenger door. After things calmed down I climbed out of the car to go see if everyone in the truck was okay. To my surprise I saw three little kids in the truck all under the age of 5! The truck only had one front bench seat and that's where all 3 kids were sitting. Had I not listened to that subtle prompting to turn the car a little to the right we would have slammed into the truck right where the kids were sitting. Amazingly no one was injured in the accident. 

Just earlier today I started another companion exchange with Elder Nelson. We were planning on going to Branford to teach, but yet again the plans got jumbled up by car problems. I'm begging to fear my companion exchanges with Elder Nelson :). Just joking! For the past little while the inside of our car has been smelling like gas really bad. But today it was worse than its ever been. We deemed the car hazardous, then called our mission office in Jacksonville and they had us take it into the shop. While we sat in the waiting room the service man came out to fill us in on the status of the car. As we talked we felt prompted to take things to a more spiritual note. Our conversation went from talking about our car to talking about life after death. He told us about a dream he had about the after life and asked if we might know what that means. We turned to the Bible and showed him where it teaches about the very doctrine the spirit revealed to him in his dream. He then gave us his number and asked us to call him so he can learn more. Had we not listened to the Spirit it could have taken this man, who knows how long, before he received answers to his questions about Gods plan for him. 

I think its important to learn how to recognize and follow the Spirit to make it through this life and ultimately to make it back to live with God. 

President Boyd K. Packer taught: “The voice of the Spirit is described in the scripture as being neither ‘loud’ nor ‘harsh.’ It is ‘not a voice of thunder, neither . . . voice of a great tumultuous noise.’ But rather, ‘a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper,’ and it can ‘pierce even to the very soul’ and ‘cause [the heart] to burn.’ (3 Ne. 11:3; Hel. 5:30; D&C 85:6–7.) Remember, Elijah found the voice of the Lord was not in the wind, nor in the earthquake, nor in the fire, but was a ‘still small voice.’ (1 Kgs. 19:12.). The Spirit does not get our attention by shouting or shaking us with a heavy hand. Rather it whispers. It caresses so gently that if we are preoccupied we may not feel it at all. Occasionally it will press just firmly enough for us to pay heed. But most of the time, if we do not heed the gentle feeling, the Spirit will withdraw and wait until we come seeking and listening and say in our manner and expression, like Samuel of ancient times, ‘Speak [Lord], for thy servant heareth.’ (1 Sam. 3:10.)” (“The Candle of the Lord,” Ensign, Jan.1983, 53). "God answers our prayers through personal inspiration and revelation. Our task is to live worthily, pray fervently, and learn to recognize and follow courageously the Spirit’s guidance. Many voices in the world compete for your attention, and they can easily drown out spiritual impressions if you are not careful." (Preach my Gospel, page 96-97).