Cover image: “Oh, Lord” by Yongsung Kim, https://havenlight.com/.
All of us have been taught by the Lord in one way or another. Some of our most profound spiritual experiences come when God expands our mind with infusions of elucidating knowledge…
“I Can Teach You Anything!”
“In her late 40’s, Dee Bowden was directed by the Lord to go back to school. It was a huge lifestyle change because she was already so busy, but she was obedient and signed up for some very difficult classes. She writes,
“After the first week or two, I was so overwhelmed with the classes and schedule that I decided to drop one of the classes that had the most memorization. I was feeling so insecure about my rusty ability to learn and was concerned that there were not enough hours in the day to accomplish everything that was expected of me. I felt relieved in my decision and didn’t complete the assignments for that class.
“Before dropping it, I wanted to make sure that the Lord and I were on the same page, so I knelt down to pray. I poured out my whole soul and asked if He was on board with me dropping the class. As I waited in silence, I heard the powerful words come into my mind,
“DON’T YOU TRUST ME? I CAN TEACH YOU ANYTHING!”
“With tears in my eyes and a great appreciation for His help, confidence and concern, I got off my knees and went to work to complete all of the assignments that were due. He was true to His word, and I was able to feel the Lord GUIDE and EXPAND my mind on so many occasions.”[1]
Do you believe that God can teach you anything? When we truly believe that, our faith skyrockets, we begin to realize that He is unlimited in how he can stretch our minds.
Hebrew Unveiled
Years ago, I had a strong desire to learn Hebrew. We had a Jewish boy live with us for a few months and he helped me study beginning Hebrew in exchange for piano lessons.
It was so difficult! I had to learn a whole new alphabet, the verb tenses were confusing, and the pronunciation was tough, but I loved studying it. I prayed for understanding, but I knew I’d never get very far because of the difficulty of the language and my limited time.
One day, as I went to my notes and began to study, my mind was unexpectedly stretched and enlarged. I suddenly understood Hebrew! I comprehended the difficult verb tenses, the sounding of the words and the writing. I remember thinking, “This is SO EASY!” NOW I see how everything fits together!” I’ve GOT this! I was elated and felt totally expanded. Very few moments in my life have been so delicious!
The next day, I got out my book excited to continue with my illuminating studies, but the expansion from the day before was completely gone and I was back to hardly understanding anything.
Apparently, it wasn’t God’s will that this become permanent, but I marveled how God COULD open up my understanding, and that it was possible for Him to teach me anything! My faith increased exponentially knowing that unlimited knowledge was in God’s hands and sometimes he shared that with me…
Miraculous Math
Kurt A. Lippmann writes about an incredible story where the Lord filled him with brilliance:
“There was a time in my college years where I took an extremely advanced mathematics course and had a remarkable spiritual experience. The math was exceedingly difficult, and I was stumped. I turned to The Lord in prayer asking Him for help to understand. Knowledge, comprehension, and understanding began to flow and I wrote it down. Every inch of that paper became covered with equations. I kept it as a memento and as a testament to the truth that The Lord DOES answer prayers and can bless people in remarkable ways.” [2]
Here is a picture of Kurt’s paper; a cherished souvenir of pure revelation.
There is nothing the Lord can’t reveal when He is given a willing mind to illuminate…
You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know, – Until You Do…
Many years ago, while my brother Glenn Hinton was visiting Japan, he had a mind-blowing experience. He went into a restaurant to eat. As he looked at the fried rice, egg, onion and peas placed in front of him, his mind suddenly expanded into an understanding concerning the history of each item on his plate. He had the realization and deep appreciation about how each food item had been planted, weeded, harvested, boxed, transported, marketed and then finally prepared for him.
As this light continued to illuminate him, his mind turned to his shoes, apparel, and modern conveniences.
It filled him with such profound emotion to grasp the fact that it took the work of literally hundreds of people to give him the life that he so enjoyed. The wonder of that observation was life-changing to him.[3]
What powerful knowledge God can give us that we are normally completely unaware of. There is so much to know and learn! Especially as we ask for it…
Mind Expansion to Save a life
President Russell M. Nelson talked about a poignant experience as a heart surgeon where his mind was opened to save his patient’s life. His patient, a stake patriarch knew that he needed two valves to be repaired and told Dr. Nelson in desperation,
‘Dr. Nelson, I have prayed for help and have been directed to you. The Lord will not reveal to me how to repair that second valve, but He can reveal it to you. Your mind is so prepared. If you will operate upon me, the Lord will make it known to you what to do. Please perform the operation that I need and pray for the help that you need.’
President Nelson then says,
“His great faith had a profound effect upon me. How could I turn him away? Following a fervent prayer together, I agreed to try. In preparing for that fateful day, I prayed over and over again, but still did not know what to do for his leaking tricuspid valve. Even as the operation commenced, my assistant asked,
‘What are you going to do for that?’
“I said, ‘I do not know.’
“We began the operation… While examining [the] valve, a message was distinctly impressed upon my mind: ‘Reduce the circumference of the ring.’ I announced that message to my assistant…But how?…
“Then a picture came vividly to my mind, showing how stitches could be placed—to make a pleat here and a tuck there—to accomplish the desired objective. I still remember that mental image—complete with dotted lines where sutures should be placed. The repair was completed as diagrammed in my mind. We tested the valve and found the leak to be reduced remarkably. My assistant said, “It’s a miracle.’
“I responded, It’s an answer to prayer.”
“The patient’s recovery was rapid and his relief gratifying. Not only was he helped in a marvelous way, but surgical help for other people with similar problems had become a possibility. I take no credit.”[4]
No Limits
There are NO LIMITS to what the Lord can teach us; the knowledge and support to pass tough classes, understanding of Hebrew and math, amplified awareness and even critical information on how to save a life! Some of this knowledge is a gift to the faithful, but most comes through fervent asking.
What do you want to know? God can teach you ANYTHING!
Please Feel Free to CONTACT ME at an********@ho*****.com
[1] Dee Bowden, personal correspondence. Used with permission.
[2] Kurt A. Lippmann, personal correspondence. Used with permission.
[3] Glenn Hinton, personal discussion. Used with permission.
[4] Russell M. Nelson, “Sweet Power of Prayer,” April Conference 2003.
