From the moment we arrived on this earth we needed help and guidance to learn how to function in society. We are constantly learning and growing through interaction, experience and trial and error. Sometimes we learn things on our own, other times we have to ask when we don’t know how to do something.
Imagine your first day of college. Your parents are sending you off into the big world full of uncertainties and new experiences. Your mom is in tears, she doesn’t want to let you go. There are so many things she wishes she had told you, so many things that you have yet to experience. You say good bye, and as you turn to leave your dad says “Remember, if you need anything we’re just a phone call away.”
I imagine that this is very much what our goodbye in Heaven was like. As we prepared to come down to earth our loving Heavenly Father sent us off with a gentle reminder to pray if we ever needed him. Prayer is our Father in heaven’s way of communicating with us. He knew that this life was not going to be easy and that we would need a lot of help. He sent us down with friends and put us in family units so that we would have help in the trying times ahead. But he also gave us something extra special to help us on our journey.
Despite the fact that we were sent down to loving parents to take care of us while on earth and away from our heavenly home, Heavenly Father knew that our loving parents were also children of his own, learning and growing from lives experiences just as much as the child they are charged to take care of. That is why he gave us prayer; it is a life line that allows us a direct call to our Heavenly Father whenever we need him. The scriptures teach us “Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” (Matt. 7:7-8)
Our Father in heaven does not ask us to do this alone. In fact he knows that we can’t do it alone. President James E. Faust taught: “Each of has problems that we cannot solve and weaknesses that we cannot conquer without reaching out through prayer to a higher source of strength. That source is the God of heaven, to whom we pray in the name of Christ.” (James E. Faust, 59 or 67) God knew that we would reach points in our lives where obstacles stood in the way. But the Lord also promised us that he would never give us anything that we can’t handle. 1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” God will not give us anything that we can’t do or handle. He meant for us to succeed and he will give us a way to escape, that escape is also known as prayer.
Christ taught that we must “watch and pray lest we enter into temptation.” (Mark 14: 38) God wants us to use the life line that he has given us. He didn’t send us down here to fend for ourselves but rather to exercise our free agency and learn and grow through lives experiences with his help.
Why do we pray? What is so important about prayer that we are constantly reminded of its importance and function in our lives? Prophets throughout history have told us to pray always and not faint. (2Nep 32: 9) In Mosiah Chapter four verse eleven King Benjamin tells us that we must retain in remembrance that we are nothing and that we must humble ourselves and pray to the Lord daily.
Without God we are nothing, we wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for him. Prayer may be a lifeline to direct help from the Lord but it is also a way for us to show the Lord that we care and love him and that we are grateful to him. We should always recognize the Lord’s hand in our lives and praying to him daily is one of the ways to do this.
Throughout the scriptures there are many examples of this. Lehi and his family always thanked the Lord in prayer for the blessings they had been given; after Nephi and his brothers brought back the plates the offered up sacrifice and burnt offerings, giving thanks unto the Lord. (1 Nephi 5: 9)
Other reasons for prayer are to remain close to our Father in heaven. The best way to maintain a good relationship with someone is to talk to them. Imagine how our Heavenly Father must feel when we do not talk to him. He loves us so much and it hurts him when we do not return that love by calling upon him. By talking to and listening to him through prayer we become better in tune with his spirit and we are better prepared to receive personal revelation. The more we talk to him the better we come to know his voice and the more likely we will be to hear him calling to us. Alma 5:60 says “And now I say unto you the good shepherd doth call after you; and if you will hearken unto his voice he will bring you into his fold, and ye are his sheep.” We must become familiar with the voice of the shepherd so that we will recognize the call when it comes.
Prayer is a great source of guidance. Throughout our lives we have to make many different decisions. We decide where we go to school, who to marry and when, what classes to take; so many questions and so many choices that we have to make in our lives. Heavenly Father knows everything, and he knows what will make us the most happy. He wants to help but we must first go to him in prayer. He cannot nor will he force a decision upon us. We always have our free agency and therefore we must go to him first. “Pray always, and I will pour out my spirit upon you, and great shall be your blessing.” (D&C 19:38) The Lord has blessings that he wants to give us; all we have to do is ask in humble and sincere prayer.
How do we pray? Christ gave us specific instruction on how to pray. When we pray we need to be mindful of who we are speaking to, we must offer the respect that our Heavenly Father deserves. Russell M. Nelson said “We can use right words- special pronouns- in reference to deity. While worldly manners of daily dress and speech are becoming more casual, we have been asked to protect the formal, proper language of prayer. In prayer we use the respectful pronouns, Thee, Thou, Thy and Thine instead of You, Your and Yours. Doing so helps us to be humble.” (Lessons from the Lord’s Prayers, 47) Showing proper respect for the Lord will enhance our prayers and they will become more sincere. In our prayers we begin by addressing our Heavenly Father and closing in the name of Jesus Christ.
When we pray we do not always need to make them long. Especially in public, keeping the prayer simple will only enhance the prayer and add to the spirit. Russell M. Nelson stated “A closing prayer in a church meeting need not include a summary of each message and should not become an unscheduled sermon.” (Russell M. Nelson- Lessons from the Lord’s Prayers, 46) The Lord will hear and answer all our prayers no matter the length, time spent or things said. Joseph F. Smith counseled “there is such a thing as overdoing. A man may fast and pray till he kills himself, and there isn’t any necessity for it; nor wisdom in it… The Lord can hear a simple prayer, offered in faith, in half a dozen words, and he will recognize fasting that may not continue more than twenty-four hours, just as readily and as effectually as he will answer a prayer of a thousand words, and fasting for a month… The Lord will accept that which is enough, with a great deal more pleasure and satisfaction than that which is too much and unnecessary.” (Joseph F. Smith-133-134)
We must also beware of praying to be noticed. We do not pray to get glory or praise of the world. We pray because we are talking to our Father in Heaven. “And when thou prayest thou shalt not do as the hypocrites, for they love to pray… that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.” (3 Nephi 13: 5) When we pray to be noticed we are not being sincere in our prayer, neither are we showing the proper love and respect towards our Heavenly Father when we call upon his name.
Our Father has told us to pray in secret, not to get glory of the world. 3 Nephi 13:6 teaches “But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret; and thy Father who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.” Heavenly Father knows our capabilities and therefore he will only expect what we can give. Even the shortest prayer, if it is sincere will mean so much to our Heavenly Father and he will answer us when and how he sees fit.
When should we pray? The prophets have counseled us to pray always. Alma teaches “counsel with the Lord in all thy doings. When thou liest down at night, lie down unto the Lord that he might watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God.” (Alma 37:37) When we council with Lord in all things he can then direct us in the best possible way. We will have great success if we involve the Lord in our everyday lives.
We should pray at least in the morning and at night and before our meals. However, there is no limit to how much time you spend talking to God. You can pray as often as your heart desires. Our Father in heaven loves to hear from us. Jesus Christ told his disciples to always keep a prayer in their hearts. (3 Nephi 20:1)
David A. Bednar taught “Morning and evening prayers- and all of the prayers in between- are not unrelated, discrete events; rather, they are linked together each day and across days, weeks, months even years. This is in part how we fulfill the scriptural admonition to pray always.” (David Bednar- Pray Always, 42) As long as we keep a prayer in our hearts and pray unto the Lord in the mornings, throughout the day and in the evenings before we go to bed we will always have the Lord’s spirit to be with us. We will feel closer to the Lord’s love and we will feel his hand in our lives as he guides and directs us towards our ultimate goal of Eternal Life.
Alma 37:36 teaches us “…cry unto God for all thy support… let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord; yea let the affections of thy heart be placed on the Lord forever…” We should always pray to God. We need to pray to him when we are discouraged or struggling just as much as we need to pray and thank him when we have had a good day. We must communicate with our loving Heavenly Father as often as possible, and even when we are not on our knees praying to him it is still important to keep him in our thoughts and in our hearts.
There will be days of struggle and heartache, when we think we can go on no longer. It will seem as if we are sinking into the depths of despair. We will feel tempted to just give up rather than turn to the Lord. President Monson said “At times there appears to be no light at the tunnels end- no dawn to break the night’s darkness. We feel abandoned, heartbroken, alone. If you find yourself in such a situation, I plead with you to turn to our Father in heaven in faith. He will lift you, and guide you. He will not always take your afflictions from you, but He will comfort and lead you with love through whatever storm you face.” (Thomas S. Monson- Looking Back and looking Forward, 90)
God gave us prayer as a lifeline. Using prayer we can call upon our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to save us when we feel like we are drowning; just as Peter called to the Master “Save me” when he began to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. (Matt. 14:30) Sometimes we will feel discouraged and begin to lose faith when we see the winds and torrents billowing up around us. But we must remember that all we have to do is call out to the master and he will be there for us immediately.
Just as we might make a call home when we are discouraged with an assignment in school or stressed for a test that is coming up, we can also make a one way call to our Heavenly Father in times of need, despair, discouragement or confusion. He knows all the answers for the exam. He may not give us the answers, but he will always take the time to listen and offer help where he sees fit. The Lord will never abandon us, he is always there; you just have to dial the number.
Works Cited
-The Standard Works
-Book of Mormon- Student Manual Religion 121-122- Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Salt Lake City, UT, 2009
-James E. Faust- Conference report, Apr. 2002, (67) or Ensign, May, 2002, (59)
-Lessons from the Lord’s Prayers- Russell M. Nelson, Ensign, May, 2008, (46-49)
-Joseph F. Smith- Conference Report, Oct. 1912, (133-134)
-Pray Always- David A. Bednar, Ensign Nov. 2008 (41-44)
-Looking Back and Moving Forward- Thomas S. Monson, Ensign, May 2008, (87-90)
-lds.org
-http://scriptures.lds.org/
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