Reverence does not equal quiet (and other cool stuff I heard last weekend)!

I was not raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, so when I find myself baffled by the culture of this religion (and yes, I'm often baffled, especially here in Utah), I simply remind myself, "Yeah....I'm a convert. So that makes zero sense to me."

One piece of church culture that I've never understood is the idea that you have to be quiet in order to be reverent or to feel God's spirit. The most reverent times in my life are usually anything but quiet. When my four kids who live here in the Valley are all home at the same time with their friends and families, it is loud and raucous, often chaotic and boisterous. 

And also perfect! 

When I witness the four of them together, inside jokes and hilarious memories, such close friends with such different personalities, I'm in awe of the love and grace they extend to each other. It is, for me, the epitome of reverence. Tears are welling in my eyes even now, as I write about it. I feel so blessed that all four of them still wanna hang with me, even though they no longer have to. I am the luckiest! And the reverence I feel for my Heavenly Parents, who trusted me with these precious souls, is most notable when they are all together, in spite of the noise level. 

So last weekend, in the Saturday morning session of General Conference, when Elder Patrick Kearon taught that "We are members of the Church of Joy," and that joy should be most obvious when we "gather to worship the source of all joy," I might have jumped right out of my bed, clad in my most comfiest "pajama church" clothes, and shouted, "PREACH, brother!" Then he went on to explain (and demonstrate!) that, while the culture of  "folding our arms tightly around our chests, bowing our heads, closing our eyes, and holding still---indefinitely!" might be helpful when teaching children, as we mature, we discover that "reverence is so much more." 

Well by this point in the talk I had two epiphanies. First, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for this new apostle, whose feelings resonate so perfectly with my own. Perhaps it's because he joined the church as a young adult, just like I did? And second, this is why callings in Primary have never been a great fit for me. I refuse to insist that children, after sitting for a full hour in a silent, not-so-joyous sacrament meeting, be forced to do the same thing for yet another hour. Or to tell them that if they don't, they're not being reverent. Their very presence is reverent. They are so new from Heaven that they radiate God's grace simply by being! So no, I won't ask them to fold their arms, bow their heads, or be still. 

In the spirit of Dissoi Logoi, I should acknowledge that there is clear doctrine to describe how in some cases, quiet is needed in order to hear the Spirit, 1 Kings 19:11-13, for example. And yes, I honor those experiences from scripture and from people today, who testify that in the quietest of times, they hear God's whisperings. But there are other times when the Spirit is compared to a "rushing mighty wind" (Acts 2:2). However we experience God's spirit is incredible, and there are as many ways, times, and places to experience it as there are people. If we seek God, God will respond in the perfect way for our unique needs. And however that happens, it will be reverent. 

I also really enjoyed Elder Karl D. Hirst's talk. He spoke on one my most cherished topics: being God's favorite! I expressed my own feelings about being God's favorite in my post to this blog back in April, called "Dissoi Logoi: A "Truthier Truth," so it was pretty cool to hear someone echo my feelings in General Conference. Comparing God's love to circles on a Venn diagram, Elder Hirst taught that "God's love is where we all overlap. Whichever parts of us seem different, His love is where we find togetherness.

Wow! Does that send shivers up your spines, too? Whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever your circumstances, you are God's favorite! You are loved with a power and purity stronger and greater than you can even imagine. I think this concept is sometimes challenging to grasp because it seems too good to be true. Most often when things seem too good to be true, it's because they aren't true. But the love of our Heavenly Parents and our Savior is the exception. Indeed, that kind of love, that radical grace seems way too good to be true. And yet.....it is true! 

And you don't even have to be quiet to feel it.