You’ve likely heard people say, “I feel the Spirit strongly right now.”
Maybe you feel something in that moment too. But is there something wrong with you if you don’t?
Short answer: not at all.
Because people experience the influence of the Holy Ghost differently. That’s what’s so miraculous about the Holy Ghost’s messages: they are made just for you.
For some people, the Holy Ghost may cause them to feel overwhelmed with emotion and moved to tears. For others, tears rarely or never come. And that’s okay. For them, the Holy Ghost may produce a subtle feeling of gratitude, peace, reverence, or love (see Galatians 5:22–23).
The scriptures also describe the Holy Ghost as a “burning” in the bosom (see Doctrine and Covenants 9:8–9). But the intensity or degree of that “burning” can be different for everyone. Sometimes it’s like a small glowing ember instead of a raging bonfire.
Or perhaps you’ve heard the Holy Ghost described as a “still small voice” (see Doctrine and Covenants 85:6). And you immediately thought: “But I haven’t HEARD a voice. Is something wrong with me?”
Again, not at all. That scriptural description doesn’t necessarily mean that we all hear a literal voice. Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that “the Spirit speaks words that we feel. These feelings are gentle, a nudge to act, to do something, to say something, to respond in a certain way."1
The point is: each of us will experience the Holy Ghost differently. And in different degrees. What’s important is that we live worthy to receive it and recognize it when it comes. As we do, we’ll begin to notice that His influence is present in our lives a lot more than we expected.
Notes
1. Ronald A. Rasband, “Let the Holy Spirit Guide,” April 2017 general conference.
