Prayer: Recognizing Answers

The fourth principle in getting through adversity is to receive comfort, strength and guidance through prayer.

“There are three ways in which men get what they want,” Harry Emerson Fosdick says, “--thinking, working, praying.

"Concerning the first two no one has any doubt; if we are to fulfill our desires, of course we must think and work. But concerning the third, doubts are plentiful. In many minds such baffling questions rise concerning prayer that that whole area of experience is nullified.” (Living Under Tension)

Often when we try the avenue of prayer it looks something like this:

“Many of us pray as if we are ordering groceries,” Gordon B. Hinckley mused once.  “We pick up the telephone and say, ‘Is this the right place to place my order?’ and we proceed right to dictating our order. When we have then ended that list, we hang up.”

God is neither Santa Claus nor Grocer, nor is he absent nor unmindful of us.  He is, however, omniscient and works outside time—this means his desires for our ultimate good and ours for our immediate good are often at cross-purposes.

There are principles in place to work through this conflict in communication. For Heavenly Father always answers our prayers.  The principles are widely taught but here’s a short review:

Engaged

Earth life is a hand’s on class.  Therefore to ‘know of the doctrine’ we must do the will of the Father.

Timing

God’s answers to our prayers sometimes seem...slow in coming.  At least, he doesn’t seem very prompt at answering our requests.  What happened?  Did our prayers reach his voice mail rather than his ear? Often we seem to play telephone tag—we ask and wait...and wait...

Being outside time God works with something called “due time.”  We use it too, sometimes.  For example, you wouldn’t feed a six month-old a juicy steak—no matter how tasty the steak is, and no matter the tantrum she immediately collapses into.  But eventually, over time, the child’s body grows and she  is able to eat the steak without negative consequences. Then, due time having arrived, she is given steak (and promptly discards it in favour of peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches).

Some Assembly Required

Just like a legos, answers to prayer come in pieces. Putting them together signifies we are willing to work for the answer and aids us to grow more like God. Everyone—even Jesus—received answer to prayer one piece at a time. Often the pieces build upon each other.  

Answers to Questions We Didn’t Ask

Knowing what is best for us, Heavenly Father sometimes answers the question we should have asked but didn’t.  Therefore we suddenly find ourselves the bemused owner of an apple when we asked for a chocolate chip cookie.

Many Forms of Reply

Our preconceived notions of the form the answer will come in also causes us to miss God’s responses to our prayers.  Answers come in many forms—usually by feelings of power and peace via the Holy Spirit, but also through verses of scripture, a voice in our mind, dreams in the night, other people, etc.  

Therefore it’s a good idea to pray to recognize the form the answer comes in.

The Problem with Angels

What about angelic visitations?  Lots of people in the scriptures saw angels...

...they certainly did, but often the angelic message dimmed over time.  It didn’t stick with them.  After his dramatic conversion Paul spent three years in Arabia cementing it...after seeing an angel the sons of Mosiah spent many days in searching the scriptures with fasting and prayer...

 As Joseph F. Smith has said: “Through the Holy Ghost the truth is woven into the very fibre and sinews of the body so that it cannot be forgotten.”

Prompted in Quiet Moments

“His answers will seldom come while you are on your knees praying” Elder Richard G. Scott reminds us, “even when you may plead for an immediate response. Rather, He will prompt you in quiet moments when the Spirit can most effectively touch your mind and heart. Hence, you should find periods of quiet time to recognize when you are being instructed and strengthened.”

Further Reading (or Listening)

“Improving Our Prayers” Joseph B. Wirthlin

“Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer” Richard G. Scott

“Pray Always” David A. Bednar

“Ask in Faith” David A. Bednar

“Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer” Richard G. Scott