And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

COMMENTARY

Ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true
I was raised in a Christian household, and as such I took the reality of God’s existence and the truth of the gospel for granted. My parents and church leaders told me that all of these things were true, and I had no reason to doubt them.
When I read through this passage at the age of seven it gave me pause. Would God convince me of the truthfulness of His word when I already believed it? I reread the passage and figured “well, why not?” It wasn’t like the scripture said God would only manifest Himself to one sort of person or another. It simply said to ask and receive an answer.
And so I knelt down, prayed, and asked God if all these things I believed were really true. He answered me. Beautiful thoughts and feelings came into my heart and they were undeniable. It was the first time I really felt spoken to by God.
Of course in later years I would learn all too well how to be cynical and skeptical, and how to question the faith of my youth. This experience always grounded me, though. I felt that if God would speak to me when I already believed, surely He would speak to me again when I needed His reassurance…. And He did.