Prayer, Scripture Study, and Church attendance are the primary activities that we are told to consistently perform as Latter-day Saints. In recent years, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve have taught us that thepurpose of these activities is Revelation. In fact, Missionaries are trained and retrained on how to help other people receive revelation when they pray, study scriptures, and attend church because the purpose of prayer is not to talk, the purpose of scripture study is not to study the words on the page, and the purpose of Church is not to hear others speak- the purpose of all three are to receive communication from God.
Recent studies on Innovation have found that daydreaming is key to creativity. That's right, the individuals who scored highest on creativity tests were those who were the most prone to daydreaming. The essence of revelation, or innovation and creativity, is making new connections that lead to new solutions to various challenges. Studies show that these new connections are made when people daydream, not when they are absolutely focused on the problem (in fact, they found that caffeine stifles creativity because it causes the mind to focus- think word of wisdom and why it is required for a temple recommend). Finally, and obviously, they found that people daydream when they are bored.
The caveat, however, is that one must be somewhat aware of their own daydreaming in order to recognize when genuine connections are made, or else they will be lost. Thus, disciplined daydreaming, or pondering, is they way to revelation. So maybe Church meetings and the scriptures were intended to be boring- either way, if you are looking to experience God to the degree that Joseph Smith and other prophets experienced God, then let us all embrace the boredom!
Recent studies on Innovation have found that daydreaming is key to creativity. That's right, the individuals who scored highest on creativity tests were those who were the most prone to daydreaming. The essence of revelation, or innovation and creativity, is making new connections that lead to new solutions to various challenges. Studies show that these new connections are made when people daydream, not when they are absolutely focused on the problem (in fact, they found that caffeine stifles creativity because it causes the mind to focus- think word of wisdom and why it is required for a temple recommend). Finally, and obviously, they found that people daydream when they are bored.
The caveat, however, is that one must be somewhat aware of their own daydreaming in order to recognize when genuine connections are made, or else they will be lost. Thus, disciplined daydreaming, or pondering, is they way to revelation. So maybe Church meetings and the scriptures were intended to be boring- either way, if you are looking to experience God to the degree that Joseph Smith and other prophets experienced God, then let us all embrace the boredom!
Comments
Post a Comment