By Elder Kyle S. McKay
Of the Seventy

On the morning of a beautiful clear day early in the spring of 1820, 14-year-old Joseph Smith entered a grove of trees near his family’s home to pray about his sins and to ask which church to join. His sincere prayer, offered with unwavering faith, received the attention of the most powerful forces in the universe, including the Father and the Son. And the devil. Each of these had an intense interest in that prayer and in that boy.

What we now call the First Vision marked the beginning of the Restoration of all things in this last dispensation. But for Joseph, the experience was also personal and preparatory. All he wanted was forgiveness and direction. The Lord gave him both. The instruction to “join none of [the churches]” was directive. The words “Thy sins are forgiven thee” were redemptive.

For all the beautiful truths we might learn from that First Vision, perhaps Joseph’s main takeaway was simply, “I had found the testimony of James to be true—that a man who lacked wisdom might ask of God, and obtain.”

As one scholar noted: “The real resonance of the First Vision today is to know that it’s the nature of God to give to those who lack wisdom. … The God that reveals Himself to Joseph Smith in the sacred grove is a God who answers teenagers in times of trouble.”

Joseph’s experience in the grove gave him confidence to ask for forgiveness and direction for the rest of his life. His experience has also given me confidence to ask for forgiveness and direction for the rest of my life.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2024/10/33mckay?lang=eng

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