Skip to main content

Ponderize Doct. & Cov. 88:63-64 (6-12 Mar 2016)

63 Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
64 Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you;
                                                                                                                  D&C 88:63-64

A first reading of this scripture might bring to your mind images of the Savior knocking on the door that has no doorknob. However, a more careful reading would remind us that we are the ones who have to knock.  I don’t think it is trivial that this scripture describes the steps to follow before we knock. We must draw near unto him.  We must seek him.  Then the door is opened when we knock.  Then, when we ask, we will receive. 

Part of the challenge we experience when we don’t feel like our prayers are being answered is that we may have failed to do the first two steps.  Part of the process of studying an problem out in your mind (reference D&C 9:7-9) is for us to draw need to the Lord  and seek to understand His will.  As you read the definition of prayer in the Bible dictionary, you learn a critically important principle.  Prayer is not about getting the Lord to give you what you want, it is about aligning yourself with Him so he can give you what you need. Or, in other words, what is expedient for you.     Faith in Jesus Christ requires that we put our trust in Him.  We must come to realize that He loves us more than anyone has ever loved us.  With this faith we can then allow our will to bend to match his will and then He can give us all that we need.  

Bible Dictionary - Prayer
"As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are His children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part (Matt. 7:7–11). Many of the so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.” (LDS Scriptures Bible Dictionary “Prayer”)

Quote:
It is so hard when sincere prayer about something you desire very much is not answered the way you want. It is difficult to understand why your exercise of deep and sincere faith from an obedient life does not grant the desired result. The Savior taught, “Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you.”  (D&C 88:64) At times it is difficult to recognize what is best or expedient for you over time. Your life will be easier when you accept that what God does in your life is for your eternal good. (Richard G. Scott, "Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer”, April 2007 LDS General Conference).

Cross References:

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Marking Scriptures in Gospel Library

The other day as I was reading my scriptures and using a few of the available colors to do some highlights when I realized that I wasn't fully utilizing the entire pallet of colors. In the Gospel Library app there are 10 colors available.  Each of these colors can be used in the underline, highlight, or text color mode.  I asked extended family what they do and one of my niece's responded with this color code: Red- doctrine Orange- clarifications or explanations of doctrine Yellow- commandments and specific instructions Purple- promised blessings and how to attain them Grey- power phrases Blue- favorites Dark blue- ones with a deeper meaning (I always attach a note with a dark blue)  Pink- examples of Gods love/charity Brown-specific for our day Green - Not used This "Come, Follow Me" color code seems to be all over Pinterest.  I'm not sure where it came from, but it is based on the 12 colors in a small box of crayons. Here is a color coding

Bajio, Cafe Rio, or Costa Vida?

It is time for the showdown.  Which one is best: Bajio, Cafe Rio, or Costa Vida?  Or is it (as was my opinion) that they are all exactly the same? I decided to do a taste test.  Six people participated.  Three were salad testers and three were burrito testers.  None of the people who participated have any food judging experience although a couple of them have competed in cooking contests and have a couple of first place finishes to their name.   Each couple went to a different restaurant and picked up a Sweet Pork Salad and an Steak Burrito to go.  We ordered each salad with black beans and their creamy green dressing (whatever they happened to call it).  The steak burritos were ordered enchilada style with black beans. Then we all met at a central location and judged each dish on the following: Value Score = Weight (oz)/Cost($) Overall Appeal (visual appeal, aroma, garnish) Recipe (Cooking, ingredient combination, too moist or dry) Taste (Flavor combination, Seasoning, Texture

No, I am not a vegan

Why I'm not a vegan (or a vegetarian for that matter).  After my previous post about the Word of Wisdom , I felt I should write an additional post covering this topic.  First, the word "vegetarian" means nothing.  There are so many levels, tangents, and offshoots of vegetarianism that applying the label to yourself or anyone only causes confusion.   Some vegetarians eat dairy, some don't.  Some eat fish, some don't.  Some eat eggs, some don't.  Some are weekday vegetarians, and some only honor meatless Monday.  And the list goes on and on.  Labeling yourself as a vegetarian is simply a label that brings on a confusing discussion.  So, I don't use it.   I'm not a vegan either.  You see, vegans typically fall into three categories: - They are in it for their own good health - They are doing it to be kind to animals, promote animal rights, avoid animal cruelty, etc.  - They are doing it do save the planet The trouble with many vegans