Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Answers to prayer: yes, no, answer withheld

Heavenly Father "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.

"Most often what we have chosen to do is right. He will confirm the correctness of our choices His way. That confirmation generally comes through packets of help found along the way. We discover them by being spiritually sensitive. They are like notes from a loving Father as evidence of His approval. If, in trust, we begin something which is not right, He will let us know before we have gone too far. We sense that help by recognizing troubled or uneasy feelings."

- Elder Richard G. Scott, Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, "Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer," General Conference, Oct 1989
http://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/10/learning-to-recognize-answers-to-prayer?lang=eng

No comments:

Post a Comment