The Language of Revelation

"I remember a time when I was desperate for guidance on a crucial decision. I had fasted and prayed and been to the temple, but the answer wasn't clear. In frustration I told a friend that I just couldn't get an answer. He responded, simply: "Have you asked the Lord to teach you how He communicates with you?" I hadn't, so I began to pray daily that He would. 

"Not long thereafter, while reading about Nephi building the ship, I couldn't help but notice how clearly he understood the Lord's instructions. 

"With that, I began to hunt for scriptural evidences of direct communication between God and man. At each one I made a little red x in the margin of my scriptures. Now, many years later, my scriptures are littered with little red x's, each an indication that the Lord does communicate with His people--and often. 

"The scriptures are the handbook for the language of revelation. They are our personal Liahona. If you will regularly immerse yourself in the scriptures, you'll get clearer, more frequent answers to your prayers. 

"Learning this language takes time. As a young captain charged with leading the Nephite armies, Moroni sent messengers to the prophet Alma, asking him to inquire of the Lord where the armies should go. But in time Moroni received inspiration for his stewardship himself, for he became "a man of a perfect understanding" (Alma 48:11)--suggesting that he learned to speak the language of revelation, perhaps even perfectly. 

"What a gift to have access to a pure source of information, a source devoid of flattery or spin-doctoring, "for the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not" (Jacob 4:13). The Lord will teach us directly as much truth as we are worthy and willing to learn. As Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught, "There is no limit to the revelations [we] may receive" (A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1985], 490."

Dew, Sheri.  “You Were Born to Lead, You Were Born For Glory.”  BYU Devotional 9 December 2003.