A Blessing upon this
Land
Recently I came across a verse of scripture that has made me
ponder: What blessings have I received because of the prayers and faith of
others? And how can I have greater faith
in my own prayers?
Prayers of Our Fathers
In Section 10 of the Doctrine and
Covenants, there is a verse that says, “And thus they [prophets from the Book
of Mormon] did leave a blessing upon this land in their prayers, that whosoever
should believe in this gospel in this land might have eternal life” (verse 50).
What an amazing statement! We are experiencing blessings left on this land by prophets
and other faithful Saints who lived thousands of years ago.
This verse caused me to think of
the prophet Enos’ prayer. In
addition to praying for forgiveness, Enos prayed for the salvation of
his people. He prayed that if the Nephites were destroyed, somehow a record
would be preserved that would help the Lamanites come to know God (see Enos
1:13). The Lord told Enos, “I will grant unto thee according to thy desires,
because of thy faith… Thy fathers have also required of me this thing, and it
shall be done unto them according to their faith; for their faith was like unto
thine” (Enos 1:12, 18). As we know, the Nephites were destroyed, and we have
the Book of Mormon today as a fulfillment of God’s promise to Enos.
God promised another prophet, Abraham, much earlier that
He would save his people as well. God’s covenant to Abraham is recorded
in Genesis: “..[I]n blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will
multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the
sea shore; and they seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed
shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 22:17-18). He saw the beginning of this promise fulfilled
in his sons Isaac and Ishmael, but died with a still relatively small
posterity. This led me to
a verse in Hebrews: “These [Abraham, Sarah and their posterity] all died in
faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and
were persuaded of them, and embraced them” (Hebrews 11:13). These men were
confident that the Lord would answer their prayers as promised.
So, what blessings could I leave through my prayers?
And how can I increase my faith to be more like the faith of Enos and Abraham?
Two things have come to my mind. First, the Savior teaches in John 7:17, “If
any man will do his will [meaning God’s], he shall know of the doctrine,
whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” One way to increase faith in God and his
teachings is to follow them.
A second scripture is from Enos’
story. He tells of a time when he was hunting in the woods. “[T]he words which
[he] has often heard [his] father speak concerning eternal life, and the joy of
the saints, sunk deep into [his] heart. And [his] soul hungered: and [he]
kneeled down before [his] Maker, and [he] cried unto him in mighty prayer and
supplication” (Enos 1:3-4). What strikes me about this is that he remembered
the words that his father had taught: the words of the scriptures. This helped to
increase his desire to come unto Christ. Thus, gaining knowledge of God through
study is also an essential way to build our faith in Christ.
A Story
It was something
that I still feel I should have been able to let go of. It was the dumbest thing: I couldn’t get over
a guy. I knew that he wasn’t the one for me, but I couldn’t just walk away. I
was anxious and upset, confused and heartbroken, and to be honest, scared. After
anxious days and restless nights, sleep finally came through a heaven-sent
discovery. Each night, I would kneel beside my bed and pour out my heart to my
Father in prayer. I felt that God understood how hard this was for me. He was
patient with me. He loved me despite my inability to let go. Each night, I was
able to sleep knowing that tomorrow was a new day. I could be better; and God
still loved me! When I would wake up, the first thing I would do was study the
scriptures. Each morning, like the night before, I would be filled with the
peace of God’s reassurance and guidance. This pattern continued for months
until finally, with time and a change of scene, I was able to move on.
I know that God lives. I know that
He cares about me. He wants to help us, even when we come to Him with that same
dumb thing that we should have been
able to get over already. Through His help, these experiences can become holy. If
we let them, they can sanctify us.
When people
ask me how I know that God hears and answers our prayers, I think back to this
experience. At my lowest point, I know He heard me. I have faith in the power
of prayer. I have faith that my prayers reach heaven, and are heard by the God
of the whole earth. I haven’t yet reached the type of faith that Enos and
Abraham had. I don’t know what it is like to see the promises made by God
fulfilled to my people. But I know that, like Enos and Abraham, God heard my
prayers.
In Remembrance
“Believe in
God; believe that He is” (Mosiah 4:9). Believe that through your faith, God can
bless the lives of many: those alive now, and those yet to be born.
This
holiday weekend, as we remember those who have made it possible for us to live
in a free land, let us also remember those whose prayers have left a blessing
upon this land. Let us consider how we may do the same, through strengthening
our faith in God, and in our prayers.
