“It is not given to every man to look upon the face of God as did Moses, as did Joseph Smith. One must be specially prepared before he can see what Joseph saw. …
“I used to think that if any good boy went into the woods and prayed the Lord would speak to him and manifest Himself in person, just as He did to Joseph. And there was a time, perhaps, when I would have thought that had He not done it He would have been partial. But I have got over that. It was a childish view. I do not expect the Lord to manifest Himself to me in the same way that He did to Joseph the Prophet. I expect Him to communicate with me through the gifts He has endowed me with, not through those with which He has endowed my brother or sister.
“When the Lord speaks to me or to you, it will be in a method and manner justified by our preparation, our gifts, our powers; for we have all been endowed in some degree. The Prophet Joseph was prepared from the foundation of the world to do the work he accomplished. It was the work of a seer, a prophet, a revelator; and the truth was revealed to him in ways, perhaps, that it could not be revealed to us, because of a difference in gifts.”
– Orson F. Whitney, 1910
I really appreciated this. At some point, I used to share OFW’s “childish view.” I got over it, too, but not, perhaps, with the ability to explain it as clearly as him.
The concept that God speaks to us differently based on the talents and abilities he endowed us with is pretty profound, and one I’ve not encountered before.