Knock and It Shall Be Opened

After relating how through the miracle of telephone communication he was able to learn of the birth of a grandchild within minutes of the event—even though he was on the other side of the world—President Nelson said this about revelation in a talk several years ago: “Even more amazing than modern technology is our opportunity to access information directly from heaven, without hardware, software, or monthly service fees. It is one of the most marvelous gifts the Lord has offered to mortals. It is His generous invitation to ‘ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.’” He continued, “This timeless offer to provide personal revelation is extended to all of His children. It almost sounds too good to be true. But it is true! I have received and responded to that heavenly help. And I have learned that I always need to be ready to receive it.” We are surrounded by incredible miraculous communication everywhere we look: we can send text messages from our phones, emails from our computers, and make calls from numerous devices in order to instantly communicate with someone just about anywhere in the world. With all of these examples of the miraculous transmission of information, we should be all the more willing to believe in the miracle of our own ability to receive revelation from a loving Heavenly Father. He has promised again and again that as we ask, seek, and knock, He will give knowledge to us and help us.

One story which illustrates this principle is that of how Gordon B. Hinckley was able to accomplish the monumental task of producing the first film of the temple endowment. He was given the assignment in 1953 by President David O. McKay, and this needed to be accomplished before the dedication of the Bern Switzerland Temple where it would be used to present the endowment in multiple languages. Gordon assembled a team of professionals for the production of the film and they shot it in the assembly hall of the Salt Lake Temple. As the Saints book recounts, “Everyone involved in the temple film, from the actors and crew to the editor and Gordon himself, worked on it in addition to their regular full-time jobs, giving up nights and weekends.” Clearly they were guided by revelation and were helped by the Lord to accomplish the great work, and in June of 1955 they finally had it finished in English. President David O. McKay was pleased with the work. But the herculean effort was not complete: “Since the Church did not have the equipment necessary to dub motion pictures into other languages, Gordon and his team decided to reshoot the film in German, French, Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, and Swedish. Fortunately, the translations had already been done, but completing six more versions of the film would take months, even for a seasoned director.” The hand of the Lord was upon them, though, for by early in September of that year the film was complete in all seven languages and Gordon was off to Switzerland just in time for the dedication. He had thirty thousand feet of film with him on the flight, but when they got to customs in Basel he was told that he could not enter the country with the film. The official told him, “I can’t let this in. We don’t permit the entry of film into Switzerland without clearance through the federal film board.” It was a Saturday, and the film was sent to the customs office where it would remain until Gordon could go speak to them on Monday. So on Sunday “they fasted and prayed that the film would not fall into the wrong hands.” He met with the film board and explained that it was music and instruction for the temple, and he clearly had been inspired to do one thing which proved invaluable in this moment: “As a precaution, he had put a long recording of organ music at the beginning of the film to deter any unauthorized person from accessing its sacred contents.” After listening to the music for a while, the man approved the film without asking to hear or see more than the “dull organ music.” The film was permitted just in time for the dedication of the temple. Clearly the Lord was with Gordon that day and over that whole process, showing how He will indeed help and guide and direct us as we earnestly seek His aid.   

This story highlights the Lord’s promise to His faithful servants in modern revelation: “Search diligently, pray always, and be believing, and all things shall work together for your good, if ye walk uprightly and remember the covenant wherewith ye have covenanted one with another” (Doctrine and Covenants 90:24). As we seek diligently, pray humbly, and believe in His power to help us, all things will work together for our good. We can ask and receive, seek and find, knock and have the way opened before us. As President Nelson declared, “Every Latter-day Saint may merit personal revelation. The invitation to ask, seek, and knock for divine direction exists because God lives and Jesus is the living Christ.”