(1) Thomas S. Monson – October 2013 – “I
Will Not Fail Thee Nor Forsake Thee”
“May we ever strive to be close to our Heavenly
Father. To do so, we must pray to Him and listen to Him every day. We truly
need Him every hour, whether they be hours of sunshine or of rain.”
(2) Thomas S. Monson – October 2013 – “I
Will Not Fail Thee Nor Forsake Thee”
“Prayer is a supernal gift of our Father in
Heaven to every soul. Think of it: the absolute Supreme Being, the most
all-knowing, all-seeing, all-powerful personage, encourages you and me, as
insignificant as we are, to converse with Him as our Father. Actually, because
He knows how desperately we need His guidance, He commands, “Thou shalt pray
vocally as well as in thy heart; yea, before the world as well as in secret, in
public as well as in private.”
(3) Dallin H. Oaks – April 1993 – “The Language of Prayer”
“Men and women who wish to show respect will
take the time to learn the special language of prayer. Persons spend many hours
mastering communication skills in other mediums, such as poetry or prose, vocal
or instrumental music, and even the language of access to computers. My
brothers and sisters, the manner of addressing our Heavenly Father in prayer is
at least as important as these.”
(4) Russell M. Nelson – April 2009 – “Lessons From the Lords
Prayers”
“When should we pray? Whenever we desire! Alma
taught, “Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for
good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, … and when
thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye
do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.” Jesus reminded His disciples “that they
should not cease to pray in their hearts.”
(5) David A. Bednar – October 2008 – “Pray Always”
“Prayer becomes meaningful as we remember our
relationship to Deity and heed the admonition to: “Cry unto God for all thy
support; yea, let all thy doings be unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest
let it be in the Lord; yea, let all thy thoughts be directed unto the Lord;
yea, let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever. “Counsel
with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when
thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in
your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks
unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day”
(6) Boyd K. Packer – October 2009 – “Prayer and Promptings”
“No Father would send His children off to a
distant, dangerous land for a lifetime of testing where Lucifer was known to
roam free without first providing them with a personal power of protection. He
would also supply them with means to communicate with Him from Father to child
and from child to Father. Every child of our Father sent to earth is provided
with the Spirit of Christ, or the Light of Christ. We are, none of
us, left here alone without hope of guidance and redemption.”
(7) Dallin H. Oaks – April 1993 – “The Language of Prayer”
“Literary excellence is not our desire. We do
not advocate flowery and wordy prayers. We do not wish to be among those who
“pray to be heard of men, and to be praised for their wisdom.” (Alma 38:13.) We wish to follow the
Savior’s teaching, “When ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do:
for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” (Matt. 6:7; see also 3 Ne. 13:7.) Our prayers should be
simple, direct, and sincere.”
(8) J. Devn Cornish - October 2011 – “The
Privilege of Prayer”
“We must not imagine that any kind of prayer, no
matter how sincere, will be very effective if all we do is to say the prayer.
We must not only say our prayers; we must also live them. The Lord is much more
pleased with the person who prays and then goes to work than with the person
who only prays. Much like medicine, prayer works only when we use it as
directed.”
(9) Ezra Taft Benson- April 1977 – “Prayer”
“We should prepare ourselves for prayer. If we
don’t feel like praying, then we should pray until we feel like praying. We
should be humble. (D&C 112:10.)
We should pray for forgiveness and mercy. (Alma 34:17–18.)
We must forgive anyone against whom we have bad feelings. (Mark 11:25.)
Yet, the scriptures warn, our prayers will be vain if we “turn away the needy,
and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart [not] of [our]
substance.”
(10) Ezra Taft Benson- April 1977 – “Prayer”
“It is soul-satisfying to know that God is
mindful of us and ready to respond when we place our trust in Him and do that
which is right. There is no place for fear among men and women who place their
trust in the Almighty, who do not hesitate to humble themselves in seeking
divine guidance through prayer. Though persecutions arise, though reverses
come, in prayer we can find reassurance, for God will speak peace to the soul.
That peace, that spirit of serenity, is life’s greatest blessing.”
Position Statement
God is our source of strength, hope, and
knowledge and prayer is our means of communicating with God. It is incredibly important that we take
advantage of this very sacred gift. A
quote that I once heard a long time ago stated that two people could do
anything as long as one of them was God.
I believe this statement to be true.
God can help us through any and all of our trials. It is not just helpful, but it is necessary
to call upon God through prayer. His
help in our trials will allow us to come off as conquerors.
