The Church published a new volume of church history called Saints, and I read it. Volume one, at least. I read it because I wanted to be prepared to answer the questions I'm sure my children will have someday about the more controversial aspects of church history. I prayed beforehand that my testimony would be strengthened.
After I finished, I was saying a prayer at night before we got in bed. In my prayer, I was expressing gratitude for Joseph Smith, Emma, and Hyrum, and I had an overwhelming feeling come over me. I knew it was the Holy Ghost, and it felt wonderful. It was a confirmation to me that they were real people, the work Joseph did was the work of God, and the most interesting of all, I felt as though they were my friends. I want to be very careful with such a feeling, because I don't want to be presumptuous, but if felt like the Holy Ghost was reminding me that we knew each other before, and they had finished their work, and now it was my turn.
It was a wonderful experience. It was a very direct answer to my prayer.
I bore that testimony today for our family night lesson, and shared the experience. I told the kids what it felt like and compared feeling the Holy Ghost to the feeling I get when I give Julianne a gift and I can tell she likes it. I told them that it doesn't matter what anybody says to me about Joseph Smith; I know what the Holy Ghost has said to me, and nobody can tell me it wasn't so.
Spontaneously, Sam and Joe got up and hugged Julianne and me (Annie was in a very grumpy mood). Joe asked if he could bare his testimony, and he did, and it was great. Sam did as well. It was clear that they were feeling the Spirit and it was moving them.
President Hodgman told me once that a very good indicator of Holy Ghost presence in a lesson is spontaneous testimony. I'll take this as a good sign for tonight's family night. Julianne made lemon bars, and Joe picked charades for the activity.
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