"Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God 

shall lead thee by the hand, 

and give thee answers to thy prayers."

-Doctrine and Covenants 112:10

In the past week I have truly been humbled and gone through some large changes. Its almost ironic that I wrote last week on trials but yet it reminded me of the greater perspective. I know that the scripture above is true, I have never received and an answer to prayer unless I have been humble. I also know that God answers prayers. The answers don't always come when we want them and they aren't always what we want. He does answer though. My mothers famous line is that when you feel like you haven't received an answer that in and of itself is an answer. Sometimes we haven't been doing the right things long enough and other times we need to use our own best judgment and learn how to make wise decisions. Answers come more as Yes or No rather than specifics such as - in your life you need to be a school teacher. Often times I feel a great peace when I pray. Peace is the one thing that Satan cannot imitate. I love to express gratitude to God and to apply Christ's atonement (or suffering) in my life. I can ask for forgiveness and needed strength because Christ has gone through everything and has the ability to help. I have heard critics say that prayer and religion are a crutch for the weak and I would like to make it very clear that a man is never more powerful than when he is on his knees. The power of God is real. I have felt this power and received answers to my prayers. 

I love the scripture given to Oliver Cowdery, he had already received an answer from God but latter asked Joseph Smith to receive a revelation for him, God spoke these words to Joseph Smith"...I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things. Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? what greater witness can you have than from God?"- Doctrine and Covenants 6:22-23 The Lord comforts Oliver by referencing the experience that only Oliver and God knew about. God really does love us individually and he hears each and every prayer. He knows past, present, and the future and therefore he knows what is best for our lives. As we seek to do his will we feel all the blessings he already wants to give us. It is not an easy thing to do his will and often times we will have to use our own agency. All of this is an ongoing process that helps us to become more like him. 

Recently I have felt the power of prayer and thought much about prayer and the great impact it has had on my life. I cannot even imagine not being able to talk to my Father in Heaven that I love. 

Joseph Smith at the age of 14 had pure faith when he prayed. The video below describes his experience when he prayed. Though our answers are not of the same magnitude, his experience still shows that God and Jesus is real and they do answer prayers.