Prayer and Learning by the Spirit

[_Jay]

Jay I talked with Exu today, he told me Yoda's prescience via the force is more reliable than your holy ghost.

What now?

If that is how you receive truth, then go for it. But don't put down what works for other people. God gives each of us, what we are prepared to receive. If you are satisfied with talking with Exu, then so be it, that will be the limit of what you can receive. Personally, I'm not quite so easily satisfied.

[_Bazooka]

Jay, can you demonstrate how this is a reliable method?
Based on a quick survey of the people on this forum, it can be clearly seen to be demonstrably unreliable.

Just because you are not having or have had experiences, does not mean that they have not happened and are happening to others.

Is your vision reliable? To a blind man the descriptions of what you see make little or no sense as they are outside of his experience. But does that make them any less real to you? Your sight allows you to travel with a confidence that the blind man will never know.

Granted we often ignore what we see, or even take it for granted, and in the process we stumble and fall. But that is not to say that sight is unreliable. We simply did not use the gift of sight that was available to us.

Wouldn't it be humerous for a conference of the blind to condemn those that see because of a quick survey of those that were blind?

Can you recognize the voice of your spouse in a crowd? How were you able to, there are so many voices in the crowd? Yet if you heard her tell you that your child was in danger, would you ignore it? The Holy spirit has a identifiable personality that is just as distinct as the voice of your spouse. You can learn to recognize it.

Is learning by the Holy Spirit unreliable? Apparently so, at least for you.

In the case of learning by the Holy Spirit, if we ignore it, it will simply stop. If we don't yearn for it, it will never come. If we aren't willing to live what we are taught, again it won't happen. There are rules that governs how the Holy Spirit operates. If we try to operate outside of those rules, then as you observe, the Holy Spirit won't prompt you, or as you stated it is unreliable.

The prompting of the Holy Spirit is not limited to a simple "yes" or "no". That is only the beginning steps. After we begin to learn the "signature" or the "personality" of the Holy Ghost, we begin to receive much more. There is nothing more amazing that receiving a truth that we didn't even know to ask for a "yes" or "no". When we receive such a truth, it is at a whole new level beyond reliability. We recognize the truth as pure knowledge and truth from God. We also know that we cannot deny it, for not only do we know it, but God knows that we know it.

The good news is that we don't have to remain blind as God has promised that all of his children can receive his truths and directions that they need in their lives and that isn't just true for those that belong to the LDS Church - ALL OF HIS CHILDREN.

I was attracted to this site as it indicated that it's purpose was "Because we all want the truth". Apparently there are at least a few that are instead seeking out justification for their actions. I hope that are at least some who are really seeking out truth and will share what they have found through the Holy Spirit. We all have much to learn.

None of which addresses the point in my question.
In terms of "seeking out truth" by utilising the Holy Spirit, there are posters on here who have done so and been witnessed that the Church is true.
Likewise, there are posters on here who have done so and been witnessed that the Church is false.
In what discernible way is the feeling given by the Holy Spirit different to the feeling given by some other supernatural force, or by the feeling we can generate ourselves?

[_SteelHead]

Jay I talked with Exu today, he told me Yoda's prescience via the force is more reliable than your holy ghost.

What now?

If that is how you receive truth, then go for it. But don't put down what works for other people. God gives each of us, what we are prepared to receive. If you are satisfied with talking with Exu, then so be it, that will be the limit of what you can receive. Personally, I'm not quite so easily satisfied.

Why are you on one hand telling me not to put down another's path of revelation , while on the other putting down my conversations with Exu as limited and not satisfying?

Hypocrite.

[_Jay]

If that is how you receive truth, then go for it. But don't put down what works for other people. God gives each of us, what we are prepared to receive. If you are satisfied with talking with Exu, then so be it, that will be the limit of what you can receive. Personally, I'm not quite so easily satisfied.

Why are you on one hand telling me not to put down another's path of revelation , while on the other putting down my conversations with Exu as limited and not satisfying?

Hypocrite.

For you it may be everything you need. Great and congratulations.

I don't understand why it appears that you are trying to create a confrontation.

I was trying to say that once you are satisfied (it doesn't matter what it is) then that will be the limit of what you can receive. Whether that be Exu, the Christianity of the Bible, or even the teachings of Joseph Smith, it is still true. Once we are satisfied with what we have, then we place a limit on ourselves.

I don't expect to be ever satisfied with my personal knowledge. There is always more.

I have no problem with whatever path you choose, that is your choice. I would hope that you would grant to others the same priviledge.

I also recognize that each path has different potentials. I know that I must continually adjust my own path as new knowledge is given and I have the priviledge of having new experiences. I don't have all of the answers, as I am just in the "nursery". But in reality, aren't we all?

[_SteelHead]

Can our individually attested contradictory revelations both be true?

[_Jay]

Can our individually attested contradictory revelations both be true?

Actually, yes. For example, let's say that we both have a common goal (at least to our understanding). For the sake of discussion, I going to choose Independence, Missouri (the center place - according to Joseph Smith) as that goal. Also for the sake of discussion, you are living on the west coast (I have no idea where you actually live) and I am living on the east cost (which I do not). If we both received revelation as what our next step should be to get to Independence, for you, it is for you to take one step to the east, for me, it is to take one step to the west.

Although they appear to be contradictory in their very nature, both are correct. But they are correct when they are only applied to us individually. Someone else's travel should be to the north, etc.

What is perfectly right, is perfectly right for you, where you are at, your current understanding of truth, what you are willing to accept and a whole slew of other things (I can be very grateful that God knows us and our needs individually). I can at best look at what you receive as revelation and recognize that this is what you need, but I need to also recognize that my direction can be totally different, and still both can be correct.

However, I can view what you receive as revelation and search for the principles that could apply to me and my life (like head to Independence). Once I discover what I think is a principle, I can then take it to the Holy Spirit and see if it applies to my situation. Once answered I have been blessed by your revelation as I have found principles that I can use to guide my life. But at this point, it is tailored for my situation and needs.

[_SteelHead]

Bad analogy Jay,
In this case the sprit is telling you to go to Mo. and I, to go to Abbu Dhabi.

You have a strange definition of truth. If Exu tells me that Book of Mormon is false and the spirit tells you it is true, and neither of us hypothetically ever change our positions then are both true?

[_Jay]

Bad analogy Jay,
In this case the sprit is telling you to go to Mo. and I, to go to Abbu Dhabi.

You have a strange definition of truth. If Exu tells me that Book of Mormon is false and the spirit tells you it is true, and neither of us hypothetically ever change our positions then are both true?

Analogies rarely fit all cases, but it still shows the point that what is correct for us as individuals is also very individual. The more I learn from the Holy Spirit the more I realize that I know essentially nothing.

I may not agree with you, but I will defend your right to believe it.
Even if we never agree on doctrines, I would hope that we will always respect each other and treat each other appropriately.

So what is "false" and "true" if it isn't applied to us as individuals? I remember when I was early grade school. I inherited from my brother his college text books (he is 21 years older than I). They appeared to be a mass of confusion, (especially the math ones) and I decided they weren't for me. At the time, that was a correct decision, as I was not prepared to even begin to comprehend what was in my brother's text books. Years later, when I looked at those same text books, with a much different set of experiences, I could see truths that I in prior times could not accept. When I was in grade school, the book was false (for me), later on it was true. The book did not change, but I did. Was I right to set it aside in grade school? Yes. But I was also right later on to pick it up once again and embrace it.

So what is true or false? I imagine that as both of us grow spiritually we will discover many things that will have new meanings for us. I'm sure that are aspects of your beliefs that will have deeper meanings as I progress along the trail. It would be foolish for me to make any judgement of you or your beliefs, as we are walking very different paths.

One key I have discovered, love God (no matter what you call him).

Just a curiosity question, if you truly believe in Exu, what is your purpose in coming to this site?

[_SteelHead]

What, you never heard of an ex Mormon turned candomblista?

[_subgenius]

Jay I talked with Exu today, he told me Yoda's prescience via the force is more reliable than your holy ghost.

What now?

you should proceed accordingly then....and let us know how that works out for you as a long term solution.