D. Kelly Ogden wrote:
If Elder Bruce R. McConkie were asked, “How do you know so much about the scriptures?” he would answer, “I read them.” The fact is (as we reluctantly point out), the Latter-day Saints generally know the gospel is true, but they don’t know the gospel. Certainly our spiritual witness, our testimony is most important, but even better is to have a knowledge-solid testimony. The more gospel knowledge you have, the stronger your spiritual witness can be. Pardon the expression, but in the Church it really would be wonderful to have more than “punch and cookie” testimonies. True spirituality is not born out of ignorance. We would all be better Latter-day Saints if we knew the scriptures better.
On September 5, 1999, we held a conference of all the sister missionaries in the Chile Santiago East Mission, over which we presided. Sister Ogden was conducting the conference and wrote the following about an experience she had in connection with the conference.
“I hadn’t planned on speaking in this conference but when I woke up at 4:30 this morning the thoughts really started coming and I started writing. I had just studied Doctrine and Covenants 24 and 25 the day before. If you ask people to name what section 25 is about they will immediately respond, ‘Hymns.’ I came across something a hundred times meatier than hymns in verses 7 and 8. The Lord is telling Emma that she is set apart to expound the scriptures and to exhort the Church according as it is given her by the Spirit. She is to give her time to much writing and learning. Wow. Think about it—this is the 1800s, when no one expected a woman to preach and teach.
“I told the sisters that Doctrine and Covenants 25 is a call to every woman to really study the scriptures and make a contribution wherever she resides, that if they would make scripture study a life long habit they would become wells of living water springing up unto everlasting life—not only for themselves, but for all who would come into their association. People would drink deeply from their depths and they would be a life-giving influence wherever they served.
“Reading the scriptures every day—I mean studying, not nibbling—seems to make you ‘ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you’ (1 Peter 3:15). It worked for me early this morning. The thoughts and scriptures that came to mind had long been planted there by many scripture study sessions. God can’t help us reap what hasn’t been sown.” ~D. Kelly Ogden, 8 Mighty Changes God Wants for You Before You Get to Heaven (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2004), 1-3
