here is my outline for my family home evening lesson that I'm giving tonight. I actually made it into a PowerPoint presentation so we'll see how it goes. :-)
Opening hymn: #140 Did You Think to Pray?
opening prayer: by invitation
Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer
Elder Richard G. Scott
Of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles
October 1989 General Conference
When answers to
urgent prayer don’t seem to come, it can be that we don’t understand
some truths about prayer, or because we don’t recognize answers when they
come.
Our Heavenly Father did not put us on
earth to fail but to succeed gloriously.
Communication with our Father in
Heaven is not a trivial matter. It is a sacred privilege. It is based upon
unchanging principles. When we receive help from our Father in Heaven, it is in
response to faith, obedience, and the proper use of agency.
It is a mistake to assume that
every prayer we offer will be answered immediately. Some prayers
require considerable effort on our part.
We are here on earth to gain
experience we can obtain in no other way. We are given the opportunity to grow,
to develop, and to gain spiritual maturity. To do that, we must learn to apply
truth. How we face challenges and resolve difficult problems is crucially important
to our happiness.
When we explain a problem and a
proposed solution, sometimes He answers yes, sometimes no. Often He withholds
an answer, not for lack of concern, but because He loves us—perfectly. He wants
us to apply truths He has given us. For us to grow, we need to trust our
ability to make correct decisions. We need to do what we feel is
right. In time, He will answer. He will not fail us.
I have described the absolute reality
of our relationship with our Father. There is nothing about us He does not
know. He is conscious of our every need and could provide all of the answers.
Yet, because His purpose is our eternal happiness, He encourages us to make the
correct choices.
It is vitally important to recognize
that the Lord also responds a third way to prayer by withholding
an answer when the prayer is offered. Why would He do that?
He is our perfect Father. He loves us
beyond our capacity to understand. He knows what is best for us. He sees the
end from the beginning. He wants us to act to gain needed experience:
When He answers yes, it
is to give us confidence.
When He answers no, it
is to prevent error.
When He withholds an answer, it
is to have us grow through faith in Him, obedience to His commandments, and a
willingness to act on truth.
We are expected to assume
accountability by acting on a decision that is consistent with His teachings
without prior confirmation. We are not to sit passively waiting or to murmur
because the Lord has not spoken. We are to act.
Sometimes answers
to prayer are not recognized because we are too intent on wanting
confirmation of our own desires. We fail to see that the Lord would have us do
something else. Be careful to seek His will.
When we seek inspiration to help make
decisions, the Lord gives gentle promptings. These require us to think, to
exercise faith, to work, to struggle at times, and to act. Seldom does the
whole answer to a decisively important matter or complex problem come all at
once. More often, it comes a piece at a time, without the end in sight.
I have saved the most important part
about prayer until the end. It is gratitude! Our sincere efforts to
thank our beloved Father generate wondrous feelings of peace, self-worth, and
love.
If you seek His help, be sure your
life is clean, your motives are worthy, and you’re willing to do what He
asks—for He will answer your prayers. He is your loving
Father; you are His beloved child. He loves you perfectly and wants to help
you.
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