Prayer – Faith,
Diligence and Heed
There is something miraculous about prayer that mixes the
physical world and the spiritual one. As part of this mortal existence, we do
not have a good understanding of this interesting overlap of the physical and
spiritual. Even with this lack of understanding, we continue to pray and then
receive spiritual and temporal blessings from our Father in Heaven.
Over the history of this world there have been a few
occasions where devices have been used to bridge the physical and spiritual
world. Moses’ staff demonstrated
physical capabilities as a conduit for the power of God. The Urim and Thummim is another prime
example.
The Liahona is also a miraculous and interesting mix of the
physical and spiritual worlds. The Liahona
was a devise of unknown origin that appeared outside of the prophet Lehi’s tent
as they were traveling in the wilderness.
It was a device that would give them direction and would also display
words for their instruction. What is
interesting about this device is the way in which it worked.
“And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the pointers
which were in the ball, that they did work according to the faith and diligence
and heed which we did give unto them.”[1]
From this we learn that the device worked based on spiritual
power. But there is a miraculous mixing
of the physical and the spiritual. While the ball gave directions and words
physically, the power it used was spiritual in nature.
Let’s look at the three words used to describe the spiritual
drivers of the Liahona.
·
Diligence is, “conscientiousness in paying
proper attention to a task; the quality of being determined to do or achieve
something; firmness of purpose.” [3]
Let’s look at how these same three spiritual drivers apply
to prayer. Prayer is also a blending of the spiritual and physical world.
Faith
We know that faith is an important part of spirituality and
is a determining factor in our eternal progression. It is also the key element in prayer.
“Mortality is a period of testing, a time to prove ourselves
worthy to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. In order for us to be
tested, we must face challenges and difficulties. These can break us, and the
surface of our souls may crack and crumble—that is, if our foundations of faith, our testimonies of truth are not deeply
embedded within us.”[i]
(bold added)
When my son, John was just three years old, my wife brought
him to my small office for a visit. As
Jo and I got talking, soon we noticed that we didn’t see John. There were only three small offices where he
could have gone, and he was obviously not in any of the offices. We thought that perhaps he had somehow
managed to push open the front door and would be outside. It had only been a minute so we ran out to
see if he was there and he wasn’t. We
checked back in the office, and he wasn’t there either. We checked with the offices next to ours and
got others involved in looking for him.
All of this took place in just a few minutes. We started to get very nervous as our
building was right on the corner of a very busy street. Could someone have taken our son? We prayed desperately to find him. We ran down the nearby streets calling his
name. As we were all still looking for John, my wife decided to go into my
office to pray again. As she prayed, she
firmly asked Heavenly Father to show her where John was. In her prayer she said, “ Show me where he is
right now.” She was expected Heavenly
Father to give her a picture in her mind of where he was. But instead, something turned head and she
opened here eyes. There was John. He had climbed into an empty bottom shelf of
a book case and fallen asleep.
Elder David A. Bednar spoke on faith at April Conference
2008. Here is an excerpt from that talk:
The
classic example of asking in faith is Joseph Smith and the First Vision. As
young Joseph was seeking to know the truth about religion, he read the
following verses in the first chapter of James:
“If
any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally,
and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
“But
let him ask in faith, nothing wavering” (James 1:5–6).
Please
notice the requirement to ask in faith, which I understand to mean the
necessity to not only express but to do, the dual obligation to both plead and
to perform, the requirement to communicate and to act.
Pondering
this biblical text led Joseph to retire to a grove of trees near his home to
pray and to seek spiritual knowledge. Note the questions that guided Joseph’s
thinking and supplicating.
“In
the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often said to myself:
What is to be done? Who of all these parties are right; or, are they all wrong
together? If any one of them be right, which is it, and how shall I know it? .
. .
“My
object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was
right, that I might know which to join” (Joseph Smith—History 1:10, 18).
Joseph’s
questions focused not just on what he needed to know but also on what was to be
done! His prayer was not simply, “Which church is right?” His question was,
“Which church should I join?” Joseph went to the grove to ask in faith, and he
was determined to act.
We know that through faith, spiritual power is exerted by
which we can influence the physical world, healing the sick, and controlling
the elements as directed by the Spirit.[5]
Since prayer is clearly a spiritual endeavor, we know that by exercising faith
and our trust in something unseen, our prayers can bring spiritual powers to
bear on our physical existence.
We must have faith when we pray.
Diligence
When I was a little boy, my mother would sometimes let me
work with her in the flower garden. As I
was weeding, she would say to me, “Work like a machine. Pull the weeds, and keep going just as if you
were a little machine.” She was encouraging
me to work hard and steady, without stopping.
Throughout my life, my parents taught the importance of diligently
pushing forward in my efforts at school, at work and at church.
By exerting continued perseverance in our lives,
particularly when it applies to our spiritual welfare, we are showing Heavenly
Father that we are a good servants and merit the blessings we ask for in our
prayers.
We must be diligent in consistently praying. We must be diligent in responding to the
answers we receive.
Heed
To heed something is more than just paying special attention
to it. In most scriptural references,
the word “heed” refers to obedience.
Nephi encouraged his family saying, “Wherefore, I, Nephi, did exhort
them to give heed unto the word of the Lord; yea, I did exhort them with all
the energies of my soul, and with all the faculty which I possessed, that they
would give heed to the word of God and remember to keep his commandments always
in all things.”[6]
To heed means to take something into one’s heart and mind
and then to be obedient.
For a family reunion one year, my Father rented
four-wheelers for us to take up the canyon and ride around. We loaded them up and went up into Provo
canyon. As we unloaded and prepared to
ride, Dad told us to be very careful. He
told us that we should not go up hills that were to steep and we shouldn’t have
two people riding on one machine. So, as
we all started going different directions, Dad asked Mother if she wanted to
ride with him. Then, they drove up a
hill that was too steep and the four-wheeler tipped back and rolled over
them. Dad severely injured his
ham-string, and Mom hit her head and got scrapped up. Fortunately, there were no long term injuries
from this accident. Years later, we
still mentioned how funny it was to have Dad, who was normally so careful, give
us this advice, and then not take it himself.
It is important to obey rules of safety and it is also
important to obey, or heed the rules of spiritual safety. When we receive
answers to our prayers, do we obey? When
Lehi and his family did not obey Heavenly Father, the Liahona would not work.
We must give special attention to the answers we receive,
and act on them obediently.
“The very factors that caused the Liahona to work for Lehi
will likewise invite the Holy Ghost into our lives.”[ii]
As we live close to the Holy Ghost in faith, diligently
moving forward, and paying attention to the promptings from God, our prayers
will be effective and we will have utilized these spiritual drivers to impact
our physical lives.
[1] Book of
Mormon, 1 Nephi 16:28
[2] The
Bible, New Testiment, Hebews 11:1
[3] http://www.thefreedictionary.com/diligence
[4] http://www.thefreedictionary.com/heed
[5] Book of
Mormon, Jacob 4: 4-7
[6] Book of
Mormon, 1 Nephi 15:25
[i] Ensign
Magazine, “How Firm a Foundation,” Thomas S. Monson, Nov 2006
[ii] Ensign
Magazine, “That We May Always Have His Spirit to Be with Us”, Elder David A.
Bednar, May 2006