"Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers."
Do you ever find it hard to be humble when asking for answers to your prayers? I often want my prayers to be answered how I want and when I want and find it really difficult when the answers take longer than expected or aren't the answers I was looking for. Do you feel that? When I became pregnant with our first child, I was not prepared for the intense sickness the pregnancy would bring. I lost 45 pounds over many months and couldn't keep food or water down. I was vomiting every day, several times a day. And it did not go away after the first trimester, like I had hoped. I was weak and discouraged. I begged the Lord to take the sickness from me. I pleaded that I would feel well enough to be able to keep attending school and my part-time job that we needed to be insured. I prayed that I'd be spared the constant vomiting and nausea. That relief did not come. I was sick the entire nine months of that pregnancy and every pregnancy after it.
I remember one day very vividly. I was lying on my bed, so sick and weak that I could hardly move. It had been probably 4 or 5 months at that point of feeling like I had the worst stomach flu of my life, and there was no relief in sight. My ribs ached from retching over and over again. I was so dehydrated that I couldn't even cry tears. I started begging Heavenly Father, once again, telling Him that I couldn't take it anymore and that I just needed to feel better. In the middle of that prayer, I felt an overwhelming peace. I knew that I would not find the physical relief I was seeking, but I knew that Jesus knew what I was feeling and that He had suffered for me. He suffered in Gethsemane and on the cross, not just for our sins, but for every pain and sadness and heartache that we would suffer. I knew that although I wouldn't find the answers that I was looking for, He would take me by the hand and lead me through that trial. My attitude changed and I was able to deal with the pregnancy with more patience and humility after that day.
I really think the key is trusting that the Lord knows us and wants what is best for us. If we turn our lives over to him, He will most definitely make more of us than we could make of ourselves. Sometimes that means the answers we want don't come. Sometimes that means we have to suffer through a trial without an end in sight. Sometimes that means that what we want the very most, even when it's a righteous desire, will not come to pass. But it never means that the Lord doesn't love us or is unaware of us.
I believe that if we are humble and pray sincerely, the Lord will lead us by the hand through whatever we have to go through. When He doesn't calm the storm, He does help us weather it. I've seen that time and again in my life. I know that He loves me, and He loves you. If we turn to Him through prayer, He will lead us and answer our prayers.
Love,
Sister Jones
2 comments:
I have seemed to have a hard time praying lately. Sometimes I feel that the Lord is not listening to my problems. I have been going through a trial for the last year and it is really hard. I want to recieve guidance from the Lord and I know what I need to do (pray) but it seems so hard. Maybe because I feel angry but everytime I pray I find that I am just speaking words not really communicating my feeling. What do I do.
There was a time in my life that the trial I was experiencing seemed so incredibly hard, and not only was I angry with the Lord, but I felt like He had been cruel. There certainly were mornings when I didn’t feel like praying and wondered if it would really even matter if I did pray. On those mornings, even when I was unsure if my prayers would be heard, it always felt worse not to pray and not seek the Lord’s help and guidance. Simply being obedient to the command to pray will bring about blessings. Communicating with our Heavenly Father actually takes work and effort on our part. Take the time to go to a quiet place where you can be alone, turn off all distractions, kneel down, and pour your heart out to the Lord. Sometimes we tell the Lord what we want, and how He should fix things, but what we need to do is express our feelings. When our only purpose in prayer is to have our circumstances changed, we will usually feel disappointed. If you are scared, lonely, heartbroken, sad, angry, hurt, or grief stricken, then tell Him. Tell Him exactly how you feel, let Him know that you need His help, and ask Him to help you feel of His love and strength. Stay on your knees and wait to feel His peace and comfort. Sometimes we must endure trials to learn how to rely on our Heavenly Father and to know that we can be strong and obedient in all circumstances. I testify that Heavenly Father loves you and desires to hear the feelings of your heart.
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