“The treasures of both secular and spiritual knowledge are hidden ones—but hidden from those who do not properly search and strive to find them. … Spiritual knowledge is not available merely for the asking; even prayers are not enough. It takes persistence and dedication of one’s life…Of all treasures of knowledge, the most vital is the knowledge of God.”
President Spencer W. Kimball, Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, p. 389-390
It is a good thing to gain knowledge in secular matters. Know your craft. Learn history. Study subjects and topics of interest. Most important though, is to seek and learn knowledge of God.
Being born into the gospel sometimes makes us take these eternal truths for granted, if we let them, at least for me it does. Because I haven’t tasted the bitter of not having the gospel, I can’t truly enjoy the sweet of these divine truths of the gospel in my life. If I’m not careful, I do take it for granted.
I have to be persistent and diligent in my quest for more knowledge. I have to be thankful and appreciative that I have that opportunity to be surrounded by the truth. I need to seek for understanding of it. Sometimes, when I feel icky and not so good, that quest is more of a task than a pleasure. I need to work on that. The adversary does not want me to gain knowledge, so he makes it so it seems more of a job to do, a responsibility.
Many times, I have counted on the spirit to join me as I study and read. But, the best thing for me is to seek (and keep) the spirit before I even begin. And prayer alone will not bring the spirit. Throughout the day I need to be doing things that allow the spirit to stay with me. I need to be listening to uplifting music or words of the prophets. Doing this not only makes it more of a joy and a reward, and not only allows for gaining greater knowledge when I do study, and not only will the spirit be teaching me throughout the day, but it also shows Heavenly Father that I’m not just going through the motions. It shows Him that I truly want to learn and understand. I am more humble and teachable.