Hard Hearts and Closed Minds

Today, I read this:
"And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word..." Alma 12:10

And being the articulate, thoughtful person that I am I said,"Well, duh!" If you don't let it in, you are not going to get anything from it. For the first time, I made the connection that hard hearts are closed minds, and hearts that are not hard are open minds. Sometimes we miss out on the greater portion of the word because we've already decided the one and only thing that it can mean and we close ourselves off to all other possibilities.

"I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little" 2 Nephi 2:30 (Italics are mine.)

We talk a lot in church about the "line upon line" part, but it seems like we interpret the "here a little" part as referring to different times. My personal belief is that it also refers to different places and sources. Are we willing to open ourselves to truth from a source other than an approved church manual? The gospel encompasses all truth, and I believe that that includes some things that we don't talk about at church.

"Yea, wo be unto him that saith: We have received, and we need no more!" 2 Nephi 28:27

Hopefully I won't offend too many people here, but I worry about people that read only their scriptures, or maybe books published by Deseret Book. Yes, there is a wealth of information and truth there, but there is amazing truth outside of that narrow focus as well. My testimony has been strengthened by reading the writings of Pope John Paul II, Mother Teresa, Jimmy Carter, Mary Baker Eddy and others. No, I don't agree with them on everything, but they have brought light and truth to my life. For me, 2 Nephi 28:27, in addition to addressing the issue of continuing revelation, addresses the need to look outside ourselves and the truths within an easy reach. It invites us to continue questioning and searching and growing. It invites us to open our minds and hearts to truth.