Eyring - Prayer - October 2001

President Eyring speaks at General Conference following the events of September 11th, 2001.  He references the troubled times we live in and the recent turning to prayer that he has observed in the world to try to make sense of the things that are happening.  President Eyring speaks of prayer and the need for God in our lives to help us through.

• In times of tragedy and danger, people turn to God in prayer.
  

He notes that as prayers are answered, we tend to be less grateful for the blessings of heaven.

• Dependence on God can fade quickly when prayers are answered. And when the trouble lessens, so do the prayers.
  

He notes:

• Three causes for the sad drift away from humble prayer.
  
  • First, while God implores us to pray, the enemy of our souls belittles and then derides it.
    
  • Second, God is forgotten out of vanity.
    
    • Pride creates a noise within us which makes the quiet voice of the Spirit hard to hear.
      
  • [God and the Savior] do not compel us.
    • We are spirit children of a loving Heavenly Father who placed us in mortality to see if we would choose—freely choose—to keep His commandments and come unto His Beloved Son. They do not compel us. They cannot, for that would interfere with the plan of happiness. And so there is in us a God-given desire to be responsible for our own choices. That desire to make our own choices is part of the upward pull toward eternal life. But it can, if we see life only through our mortal eyes, make dependence on God difficult or even impossible when we feel such a powerful desire to be independent.
      

As we have discussed many times, our greatest demonstration of discipleship is when we submit our agency to God.

• Those who submit like a child do it because they know that the Father wants only the happiness of His children and that only He knows the way.
  

Our desire to follow God is demonstrated in our love for Him.  When we put our actions in line with what He wants, we show our trust and love for Him.

• Our hearts can only be drawn out to God when they are filled with love for Him and trust in His goodness.
  

President Eyring discusses Joseph Smith as the perfect example of somehow we prays with faith and truly has a desire to do whatever the Lord tell him to do when we gets an answer.  We need to be more life Joseph in our lives if we are to unlock the powers of heaven through prayer.

• He prayed with the intent not only to listen but to obey. He did not ask only to know the truth. He was committed to act upon whatever God would communicate to him. His written account makes clear that he prayed with real intent, determined to comply with whatever answer he received.
  
• Joseph Smith’s mission was unique, yet his humble prayer can be a helpful model for us. He began, as we must, with faith in a loving God who can and wants to communicate with us and help us. That faith was rooted in impressions which came to him as he pondered the words of God’s servants in the scriptures. We can and must go often and carefully to the word of God. If we become casual in our study of the scriptures, we will become casual in our prayers.
  
• We may not cease to pray, but our prayers will become more repetitive, more mechanical, lacking real intent. Our hearts cannot be drawn out to a God we do not know, and the scriptures and the words of living prophets help us know Him. As we know Him better, we love Him more.
  
• We must also serve Him to love Him. Joseph Smith did that, finally surrendering life itself in His service. Joseph prayed with the intent to obey. That obedience always includes service to others. Service in God’s work allows us to feel a part of what He feels and come to know Him.
  

To make our prayers more meaningful, we need to start by understanding the true nature of God.  We find that in the scriptures.

• If you ponder the scriptures and begin to do what you covenanted with God to do, I can promise you that you will feel more love for God and more of His love for you. And with that, your prayers will come from the heart, full of thanks and of pleading. You will feel a greater dependence on God. You will find the courage and the determination to act in His service, without fear and with peace in your heart. You will pray always. And you will not forget Him, no matter what the future brings.

This talk reminds us of the simple truths of prayer.  What made an impression on me is that when we pray, we need to make sure that we are willing to do whatever the Lord asks us to do to have our prayers answered.  Our desire to have our prayers answered needs to come with a full commitment to do whatever the Lord asks us to do.  If we are not willing to follow and obey, we are less likely to have the blessings of heaven be given to us.  I am going to try to make my prayers more meaningful by asking God what I can do to help others in need.  Then as I listen, I need to make sure I am willing to do whatever the Lord asks me to do to.  This step is an important point in becoming a better disciple of the Savior.