A mishap in a post left me thinking. Hey, I could simply ask a question and allow you, my readers, to talk instead of me.
I am teaching a lesson on answers to prayers. Of course, I could search lds.org for "prayer" and get some wonderful quotes/resources, and I have. However, I would love some personal experiences, or wisdom you have gained through your experiences and life. I want your input if you are willing comment in. (I don't shun anonymous comments, so chime in PLEASE!)
Here is my question. When you pray for an answer to a question, and you don't get an answer--no bad feeling, no good feeling--what do you think that means? And, what do you do about your unanswered question?
5 comments:
When I am praying for an answer and I don't get one, I really think about all of my options and go with the one that I think is the best. If I make a wrong decision at this point, I think that Heavenly Father will stop me before it gets too far.
Agency is the key here. I believe that we are put into certain situations because Heavenly Father knows how we think and how we process things. He understands how we will come to a certain point or conclusion and lets us rely on our own abilities to make decisions. If that makes any sense. I also believe that Heavenly Father wants us to make decisions for ourselves, and that He trusts us more than we think.
Wow. I think that Lucy is dead on. :) We need to mediate on the question, make a decision that we think is right, and then pray about it. Sometimes we'll get a strong yes or no, but sometimes we won't feel like we have an answer. When I don't feel like I'm getting an answer I go with what makes the most sense to me, trusting that I'll either get the inspiration to change along the way, or that it is the correct thing to do. If I'm staying close to the spirit, I will know if I'm not doing it right.
Lucy--I love how simply you put this. I really do believe that Heavenly Father put us here to make the decisions for ourselves--and to use our own experiences and reasoning to make our choices. Recently I have remembered that I am not proving myself to him, but really proving it to myself. When I make a choice, it is not as if God is up there saying "ohh Jennifer made that choice." It is more like at the end of my life me looking at the choices that I have made and saying "yeah I really did do that."
Thank you so much for weighing in on this. I really do want differing opinions on the subject, so that perhaps it will answer more than one person's questions on prayer!
I like the "proceed forward in faith" concept. It seems to me that more often than not, there is no overwhelming answer to a prayer. But occasionally the direction I am headed is diverted along the way towards the decision I have made. :)
Thanks for your comments, and being willing to share your thoughts.
When I don't get an immediate answer, I think of it as the Lord saying
"Look, I'll trust you, if you'll trust me."
I think He knows I want to make good decisions. I then have to trust that if I keep praying as I go, He will open and close doors accordingly.
It's a system that has worked for me so far, though given the choice, I would actually prefer a Liahona.
Post a Comment