When I was in Primary, we had a lesson on how the Holy Ghost
is our constant companion, and that we should always have Him with is. Well
apparently the lesson got through to me because it marked the beginning of my
habit to buckle in the Holy Ghost whenever I was in the car.
Seat belt laws were kind of a new thing at the time. My mom
had put up a sign in our gold station wagon (the “golden limo”) that pictured
E.T. reminding us to buckle up for safety. Well, if E.T. was telling me I
needed to be safe, then the same rule applied to the Holy Ghost. After all, we
didn’t need the third member of the Godhead getting into a fatal automobile
accident, did we? And so I would first buckle my own seatbelt, and then the one
next to me where He was sitting.
Sometime in college I mentioned this strange phase to my
mom, and her response was that she had wondered what I was doing. Apparently I did
enough odd things that this particular routine didn’t merit any questioning. Although,
I’m pretty sure I didn’t really believe the Holy Ghost needed a seatbelt. It was a kind of make believe, and I think the Holy
Ghost operated similar to an invisible friend for a short while. He was supposed
to be my constant companion, always with me, and so I devised this strange
little plan to keep him safe.
I did eventually drop the habit (after all, a college
roommate will really make fun of you for a thing like that), but I have to
wonder whether or not I’ve maintained the same sense of awareness that I had
then.
The prophet Joseph Smith wrote, “The
Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging
scepter of righteousness and truth” (D&C 121:46). Short of turning Him into
an invisible friend, I have to ask myself if I am ever aware of His presence.
More accurately, am I ever aware of my environment and whether or not that
environment acts as the “safety belt” that will keep Him with me. From the
shows I watch, to the books I read, or the conversations I have, and even the
thoughts I entertain – do these things create an environment where the Holy Ghost
can be my constant companion?
D&C 84:46 states, “And the Spirit giveth light to every
man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through
the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit.” So the best way to
always have the Spirit with us is to listen for and follow the promptings we
receive. And if we are to receive this divine direction, then we ought to make
sure our thoughts and actions are those that keep Him “buckled in” where we
want Him. The best part is that while we’re trying, the Spirit will actually
help us to do even better than we could on our own. That’s the kind of
companion I want to keep around.
