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A power of God


Ahab

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I thought about calling it "the" power of God instead of only "a" power but decided against that because God has many more powers but this one is one of the most powerful ones I can think of.

The power to give us a very particular and specific thought that goes beyond the power of words.

Think for a moment about reading a sentence of words and how it is possible to understand those words in several ways, even though TO YOU one way to understand those words might stand out as a more obvious meaning of those words.

Words do have more than one meaning so it should be easy to understand how a person could understand a sentence of words differently than someone else.  I think it is a common thing that happens to all of us.  We choose how to understand what we read.

And it happens with spoken words, too.  When we hear someone say something we choose how to interpret what they are saying.  Or we just give up and ask them to clarify what they meant when they said something. Or we don't even bother to try to understand them.

But there is a power that God exercises when he helps us to understand someone else's words.  Out of the many possible interpretations he can give us one specific thought, even if it isn't the thought the person we heard was trying to convey.

Think about how during a General Conference session someone can get a thought from the Holy Spirit while listening to a speaker's words.  And how someone else hearing the same words can get a different thought.  Each giving the hearer something different.

That is a power of God I find to be totally mesmerizing sometimes.  I will often just sit there while being carried away by the spirit of God as he teaches me something as I listen or have listened to someone else's words.  Sometimes understanding and connecting exactly to whatever the speaker is talking about, and sometimes getting a different thought from God as God expounds on some of those words from that speaker as I am thinking about them.  And other people around me are either getting the same thoughts that I am getting or they are getting different thoughts according to whatever they are thinking about.  Inspired by the words of the speaker, sometimes, and sometimes inspired by their own thoughts they are getting from God, or from somebody else.

Can everyone understand what I am talking about?  Does everything I have said make sense to everyone?  I wonder if what you understand from my words is what I had in mind when I wrote them or if you got some different thoughts from God as you read them.

Have you experienced this power of God in your own lives and if so how would you describe or define it?  Do you think everyone realizes this is actually a power of God?

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51 minutes ago, Ahab said:

Can everyone understand what I am talking about?  Does everything I have said make sense to everyone?  I wonder if what you understand from my words is what I had in mind when I wrote them or if you got some different thoughts from God as you read them.

Have you experienced this power of God in your own lives and if so how would you describe or define it?  Do you think everyone realizes this is actually a power of God?

Yes, I can say I know what you are talking about and have experienced it. Sometimes I would qualify it as a power of God and sometimes the power of bias or intuition. I don't think everyone views this the same way. I would describe it as applying the message to ourselves. Though the application may seem tangential or unrelated to the message, something in my circumstances makes it perfectly relevant.

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6 minutes ago, CV75 said:

Yes, I can say I know what you are talking about and have experienced it. Sometimes I would qualify it as a power of God and sometimes the power of bias or intuition. I don't think everyone views this the same way. I would describe it as applying the message to ourselves. Though the application may seem tangential or unrelated to the message, something in my circumstances makes it perfectly relevant.

I am talking about a power of God which God uses to give someone a specific and particular thought, so if you're talking about getting a thought you didn't get from God then you are talking about something different.

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1 hour ago, Ahab said:

I thought about calling it "the" power of God instead of only "a" power but decided against that because God has many more powers but this one is one of the most powerful ones I can think of.

The power to give us a very particular and specific thought that goes beyond the power of words.

Think for a moment about reading a sentence of words and how it is possible to understand those words in several ways, even though TO YOU one way to understand those words might stand out as a more obvious meaning of those words.

Words do have more than one meaning so it should be easy to understand how a person could understand a sentence of words differently than someone else.  I think it is a common thing that happens to all of us.  We choose how to understand what we read.

And it happens with spoken words, too.  When we hear someone say something we choose how to interpret what they are saying.  Or we just give up and ask them to clarify what they meant when they said something. Or we don't even bother to try to understand them.

But there is a power that God exercises when he helps us to understand someone else's words.  Out of the many possible interpretations he can give us one specific thought, even if it isn't the thought the person we heard was trying to convey.

Think about how during a General Conference session someone can get a thought from the Holy Spirit while listening to a speaker's words.  And how someone else hearing the same words can get a different thought.  Each giving the hearer something different.

That is a power of God I find to be totally mesmerizing sometimes.  I will often just sit there while being carried away by the spirit of God as he teaches me something as I listen or have listened to someone else's words.  Sometimes understanding and connecting exactly to whatever the speaker is talking about, and sometimes getting a different thought from God as God expounds on some of those words from that speaker as I am thinking about them.  And other people around me are either getting the same thoughts that I am getting or they are getting different thoughts according to whatever they are thinking about.  Inspired by the words of the speaker, sometimes, and sometimes inspired by their own thoughts they are getting from God, or from somebody else.

Can everyone understand what I am talking about?  Does everything I have said make sense to everyone?  I wonder if what you understand from my words is what I had in mind when I wrote them or if you got some different thoughts from God as you read them.

Have you experienced this power of God in your own lives and if so how would you describe or define it?  Do you think everyone realizes this is actually a power of God?

Human beings can catch inspiration for one topic from something unrelated, but the influence of the Spirit comes with a different signature which can be sensed. Intelligence touching intelligence. 

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26 minutes ago, OGHoosier said:

Human beings can catch inspiration for one topic from something unrelated, but the influence of the Spirit comes with a different signature which can be sensed. Intelligence touching intelligence. 

I'm not sure I understand why you used the word "but".  I realize we have our own thoughts which can be and often are are distinct from thoughts (or at least additional thoughts) we can get from God, and I also realize we can and do get thoughts from Satan.

 

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5 minutes ago, 2BizE said:

Did Satan get his power from God in this way? God seems mostly powerful except when it comes to controlling Satan.

See:  BYU Speeches, by the late David L. Paulsen:   Joseph Smith and the Problem of Evil  (audio and transcript).

What is said in that speech obliterates that common misconception about God and what his plan is all about. 

Edited by InCognitus
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4 minutes ago, 2BizE said:

Did Satan get his power from God in this way? God seems mostly powerful except when it comes to controlling Satan.

God doesn't want to control anybody.  He wants all of us to make our own choices. If you can figure out how to give me a specific thought without using any words please tell me without using any words and I will appreciate it.

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59 minutes ago, Ahab said:

I am talking about a power of God which God uses to give someone a specific and particular thought, so if you're talking about getting a thought you didn't get from God then you are talking about something different.

I'm talking about both, including "a power of God which God uses to give someone a specific and particular thought".

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51 minutes ago, Ahab said:

Please clarify.  I don't understand the thought you intended to convey.

Can everyone understand what I am talking about? No,but I am one of those who do. Does everything I have said make sense to everyone?  No, but it makes sense to me. 

Have you experienced this power of God in your own lives (Yes) and if so how would you describe or define it?  I would describe it as a form of revelation when applying the message to ourselves. Though the application may seem tangential or unrelated to the message, something in my circumstances makes it perfectly relevant.  Do you think everyone realizes this is actually a power of God? No, but when God is involved, it is to me.

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31 minutes ago, CV75 said:

Can everyone understand what I am talking about? No,but I am one of those who do. Does everything I have said make sense to everyone?  No, but it makes sense to me. 

Have you experienced this power of God in your own lives (Yes) and if so how would you describe or define it?  I would describe it as a form of revelation when applying the message to ourselves. Though the application may seem tangential or unrelated to the message, something in my circumstances makes it perfectly relevant.  Do you think everyone realizes this is actually a power of God? No, but when God is involved, it is to me.

Much more clarity there.  Thank you and I agree with what I think you mean, which may not be what you actually mean.  I believe we often get thoughts from God and that when we do we process them based on our own level of maturity/ability to understand what God is telling us, and since we, individually, are not at the same level as everyone else, generally, there may be and often is some degree of intelligence that we are not ready to tap into even though God is ready and anxious for us to receive all we can handle.  Thus, some of us get a little bit here and a little bit there while others of us get a WHOLE LOT more or a whole lot less than others receive from God when they receive what we all usually refer to as revelation from God.

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3 hours ago, Ahab said:

Much more clarity there.  Thank you and I agree with what I think you mean, which may not be what you actually mean.  I believe we often get thoughts from God and that when we do we process them based on our own level of maturity/ability to understand what God is telling us, and since we, individually, are not at the same level as everyone else, generally, there may be and often is some degree of intelligence that we are not ready to tap into even though God is ready and anxious for us to receive all we can handle.  Thus, some of us get a little bit here and a little bit there while others of us get a WHOLE LOT more or a whole lot less than others receive from God when they receive what we all usually refer to as revelation from God.

I'd say that's about how it works, both spiritually (communication from God... or heaven forbid, you-know-who) and temporally (communication from anyone else).

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