" 14 And again, the angel said: Behold, the Lord hath aheard the prayers of his people, and also the bprayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father; for he has cprayed with much faith concerning thee that thou mightest be brought to the dknowledge of the truth; therefore, for this purpose have I come to econvince thee of the power and authority of God, that the fprayers of his servants might be answered according to their faith." Mosiah 27:14 Book of Mormon.
This struck me as powerful because it was a angelic witness of the fact that the Lord hears our prayers (whatever religion you belong to) and that he wants us to know the truth. If you believe in a greater power (our Heavenly Father), you are sincere in your prayer and attitude, you can receive an answer to your prayers.
Our prayers are not always answered the way that we want, or the way that we expect. They may not answered immediately, but that is when we have to exercise our faith. It teaches us to trust the Lord. We may believe in Christ, but do we believe the promises (covenants) that he made to us. He promised that if we were faithful and willing to live a good life, he would be there for us in the ways that we need him to be. That does not mean that he will remove trials and tragedy from our lives, but he would help us to survive them. He would help us to come out stronger and with increased faith.
I have learned that our definition of okay is often different from the Lord's definition of okay. Our task is to trust that everything he does, and allows us to go through is for our good. I know this because I have faced so many horrible moments in my life, and I can honestly say that I have grown. I struggled, and suffered, but I have grown in my faith and it is stronger than it ever has been. It was not easy to get to this point, but I have learned to trust our Heavenly Father. I am a parent and the same way that I want my children to learn, grow, and be happy, so does he. We are his children, and although we would do anything to prevent our children from suffering or struggling, they have to face somethings with only the knowledge, skills, and talent that we try to instill in them. The Lord has the same dilemma. He does not want us to suffer, but some lessons have to be learned for ourselves. He does promise though that he will support us, and provide those things we need to get through it and will offer us peace and strength through our struggles.
Will he hand it to us? NO, we have to search for his help, his answers, his strength, and we have to strive to be worthy of his support. If we are making choices that are not right, or are not in keeping with the way he has directed us to live our lives, he cannot help us the way he would want to.
I have been there. As a teen I was caught up in living a life that lead me away from Him. I was lost and confused, and making choices that got me into trouble. I felt alone and depressed, even suicidal. I felt worthless, incompetent, stupid, useless, and unnecessary. What I realized though, is that despite all of my problems, troubles, and choices, God was still watching over me. He never stopped loving me, and never stopped wanting me to succeed. When I was ready and he came to help me, by providing with a (eventual) husband who loved me for who I was. He loved me despite my issues and flaws. He loved me despite my anger, distrust, and limitations. We grew together, and today I am happier than I ever thought possible. I have more faith than I ever hoped that I could. I also have a reason to be proud of myself, and for no other reason than I finally realize that I am a good person, and a child of a Heavenly Father who loves me.
I still struggle, and I still get down and depressed. I still feel lonely sometimes, and I want to discover my potential, develop my talents, contribute to my family, community, and church. I want to be better, in so many areas of my life, but I know that I cannot do anything without my Heavenly Fathers approval, support, and inspiration.
He does hear our prayers, He does want to help us, He wants us to be happy, but He will not hand it to us. We have to earn it, and we have to do our part. Too many of us expect relief, but that is not how it works. We have to ask for help, pray for inspiration on how to solve our problems, change those things that are holding us down and back, and look to those around us for their support, friendship and love. He often answers prayers through those who care about us. We have to allow them to bless our lives, and help us.
We have to "believe" Christ.
This struck me as powerful because it was a angelic witness of the fact that the Lord hears our prayers (whatever religion you belong to) and that he wants us to know the truth. If you believe in a greater power (our Heavenly Father), you are sincere in your prayer and attitude, you can receive an answer to your prayers.
Our prayers are not always answered the way that we want, or the way that we expect. They may not answered immediately, but that is when we have to exercise our faith. It teaches us to trust the Lord. We may believe in Christ, but do we believe the promises (covenants) that he made to us. He promised that if we were faithful and willing to live a good life, he would be there for us in the ways that we need him to be. That does not mean that he will remove trials and tragedy from our lives, but he would help us to survive them. He would help us to come out stronger and with increased faith.
I have learned that our definition of okay is often different from the Lord's definition of okay. Our task is to trust that everything he does, and allows us to go through is for our good. I know this because I have faced so many horrible moments in my life, and I can honestly say that I have grown. I struggled, and suffered, but I have grown in my faith and it is stronger than it ever has been. It was not easy to get to this point, but I have learned to trust our Heavenly Father. I am a parent and the same way that I want my children to learn, grow, and be happy, so does he. We are his children, and although we would do anything to prevent our children from suffering or struggling, they have to face somethings with only the knowledge, skills, and talent that we try to instill in them. The Lord has the same dilemma. He does not want us to suffer, but some lessons have to be learned for ourselves. He does promise though that he will support us, and provide those things we need to get through it and will offer us peace and strength through our struggles.
Will he hand it to us? NO, we have to search for his help, his answers, his strength, and we have to strive to be worthy of his support. If we are making choices that are not right, or are not in keeping with the way he has directed us to live our lives, he cannot help us the way he would want to.
I have been there. As a teen I was caught up in living a life that lead me away from Him. I was lost and confused, and making choices that got me into trouble. I felt alone and depressed, even suicidal. I felt worthless, incompetent, stupid, useless, and unnecessary. What I realized though, is that despite all of my problems, troubles, and choices, God was still watching over me. He never stopped loving me, and never stopped wanting me to succeed. When I was ready and he came to help me, by providing with a (eventual) husband who loved me for who I was. He loved me despite my issues and flaws. He loved me despite my anger, distrust, and limitations. We grew together, and today I am happier than I ever thought possible. I have more faith than I ever hoped that I could. I also have a reason to be proud of myself, and for no other reason than I finally realize that I am a good person, and a child of a Heavenly Father who loves me.
I still struggle, and I still get down and depressed. I still feel lonely sometimes, and I want to discover my potential, develop my talents, contribute to my family, community, and church. I want to be better, in so many areas of my life, but I know that I cannot do anything without my Heavenly Fathers approval, support, and inspiration.
He does hear our prayers, He does want to help us, He wants us to be happy, but He will not hand it to us. We have to earn it, and we have to do our part. Too many of us expect relief, but that is not how it works. We have to ask for help, pray for inspiration on how to solve our problems, change those things that are holding us down and back, and look to those around us for their support, friendship and love. He often answers prayers through those who care about us. We have to allow them to bless our lives, and help us.
We have to "believe" Christ.
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