Hope Given by Modern Prophets: "Do Not Despair, Do Not Give Up, God Does Listen and Does Answer Prayers"

(Links to audio and text at end)

Amazing are the times in which we live, and God's purposes will move forward, even with us as individuals, if we will learn to continue in faith to supplicate our Father, who we are assured in the talks below, loves us dearly. Elders Jeffrey R. Holland as well as Elder Scott, acknowledging that we, for our own benefit and growth, may find Heaven to seemingly be far and distant.  Yet these apostles testify that God does hear us and is listening to our prayers, and will answer them.

There seems to be something happening. Heaven is stretching the faithful. We are warned here to continue in faith, despite, as Elder Holland testifies, the fact that all of us will have "Liberty Jail" experiences---"spiritually speaking." Why? Does God love us truly if he seems to be witholding from us easy revelation and guidance? Yes, we are assured by these prophets, God does love us, we must continue to pray, continue to hold on, continue to have faith.

Some seven years ago there was a stunning statement by Gordon B. Hinckley to the young adults of the Church wherein he acknowledged that many of them don't seemingly receive answers to their prayers:

"You have many problems. Many of you worry about what to do with your lives, how you will earn a living. Many of you worry about marriage, about having a good companion who will love you and whom you will love. You will look forward to the time when you will have children and hope within yourselves that you will be good fathers and mothers.

"You face problems that at times seem insurmountable. You try to find a way out but only become frustrated. You pray about these matters. But you don’t seem to get the answers you seek."  (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Be Not Afraid, Only Believe," CES Fireside, Sept. 9, 2001.)

Certainly this was a remarkable statement. Rather than tell this large world wide audience that they were not faithful enough as being the cause of their difficuly in getting the answers to prayer that they sought, he just plainly acknowledged the fact of the matter. I was there present and remember feeling he was indeed inspired and speaking to me in the above quote. I prayed and prayed and prayed it seemed, and never did it seem was I able to pray the kind of prayers that seemed to merit the attention of heaven.

Now, remarkably, President Gordon B. Hinckley continued, seemingly speaking to us more in 2008 than in 2001:

"We are experiencing a serious economic downturn. You read of thousands of layoffs. This may be a difficult season for you. You worry much about your personal affairs. You worry about money. You worry about marriage. You worry about the future.

"There may be some lean days ahead for some of you. There may be troubles. None of us can avoid them all. Do not despair. Do not give up. Look for the sunlight through the clouds. Opportunities will eventually open to you. I finished the University of Utah in 1932. It was the very bottom of the most serious depression of modern times. The unemployment rate in Utah was then more than 30 percent. There was much of cynicism. It was a time when men stood in soup lines, and some committed suicide in despair. But somehow we managed to eat and keep going. Opportunities gradually opened, first here and then there. In 1982, I spoke at the fiftieth anniversary of my graduating class. I met there men and women who had become prominent in many undertakings. They had begun almost in poverty. But they kept climbing upward. They had become leaders. They had looked for the positive in life, praying with faith and working with diligence.

"No matter the circumstances, I encourage you to go forward with faith and prayer, calling on the Lord. You may not receive any direct revelation. But you will discover as the years pass that there has been a subtle guiding of your footsteps in paths of progress and great purpose." (Gordon B. Hinckley, "Be Not Afraid, Only Believe," CES Fireside, Sept. 9, 2001.)

Elder Holland too gives us some insight as to what some or many are experiencing, what seems like a far and distant heaven that cares not for personal struggles and who demands too much it would seem for many to obtain the revelation and guildance they seek. He states:

Every one of us, in one way or another, great or small, dramatic or incidental, is going to spend a little time in Liberty Jail—spiritually speaking. We will face things we do not want to face for reasons that may not have been our fault. Indeed, we may face difficult circumstances for reasons that were absolutely right and proper, reasons that came because we were trying to keep the commandments of the Lord. We may face persecution; we may endure heartache and separation from loved ones; we may be hungry and cold and forlorn. Yes, before our lives are over we may all be given a little taste of what the prophets faced often in their lives. But the lessons of the winter of 1838–39 teach us that every experience can become a redemptive experience if we remain bonded to our Father in Heaven through that difficulty. These difficult lessons teach us that man’s extremity is God’s opportunity, and if we will be humble and faithful, if we will be believing and not curse God for our problems, He can turn the unfair and inhumane and debilitating prisons of our lives into temples—or at least into a circumstance that can bring comfort and revelation, divine companionship and peace.

Now then, three lessons from Liberty Jail: May I suggest that the first of these is inherent in what I’ve already said—that everyone, including (and perhaps especially) the righteous, will be called upon to face trying times. When that happens we can sometimes fear God has abandoned us, and we might be left, at least for a time, to wonder when our troubles will ever end. As individuals, as families, as communities, and as nations, probably everyone has had or will have an occasion to feel as Joseph Smith felt when he asked why such sorrow had to come and how long its darkness and damage would remain. We identify with him when he cries from the depth and discouragement of his confinement: “O God, where art thou? . . . How long shall thy hand be stayed . . . ? Yea, O Lord, how long shall [thy people] suffer . . . before . . . thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?” (D&C 121:1–3).

That is a painful, personal cry—a cry from the heart, a spiritual loneliness we may all have occasion to feel at some time in our lives.

Perhaps you have had such moments already in your young lives. If so, I hope you have not had too many. But whenever these moments of our extremity come, we must not succumb to the fear that God has abandoned us or that He does not hear our prayers. He does hear us. He does see us. He does love us. When we are in dire circumstances and want to cry “Where art Thou?” it is imperative that we remember He is right there with us—where He has always been! We must continue to believe, continue to have faith, continue to pray and plead with heaven, even if we feel for a time our prayers are not heard and that God has somehow gone away. He is there. Our prayers are heard. And when we weep He and the angels of heaven weep with us.   (Jeffrey R. Holland, "Lessons From Liberty Jail," CES Fireside, Sept. 7, 2008.)

There are many who feel now, today, that God has abandoned them, that he doesn't care or hear their prayers.

Elder Richard G. Scott afirms that we are being stretched and made to grow by such testing:

"Neither our Father in Heaven nor His Holy Son take delight in seeing you struggle to overcome obstacles, resolve questions, or find solutions to complex and challenging problems. However, they do rejoice when you willingly recognize that these steps are steps to growth which lead to action that molds your character.

We grow when we labor to recognize the guidance of the Holy Ghost as we struggle to communicate our needs to our Father in Heaven in moments of dire need or overflowing gratitude. Each time we do that we are taking another step in fulfilling the purpose of our being here on earth.

Our Father expects us to learn how to obtain that divine help by exercising faith in Him and in His Holy Son. Were we to receive inspired guidance just for the asking, we would become weak and ever more dependent on Him. He knows that essential personal growth will come as we struggle to learn how to be led by the Spirit. That struggle develops our immortal character as we perfect our capacity to identify His will through the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. What may appear initially to be a daunting task will become much easier over time as we consistently strive to recognize the feelings awakened by the Spirit. Our confidence in the direction we receive through the Holy Ghost will also become stronger." (Richard G. Scott, "To Learn and to Teach More Effectively," BYU Education Week Devotional Address delivered August 21, 2007.)

Elder Holland testifies that we must continue on, hoping, having faith, praying and believing, for our Father is eagerly waiting the chance to "answer your prayers and fulfill your dreams":

"Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ—that is the first principle of the gospel. We must go forward. God expects you to have enough faith, determination, and trust in Him to keep moving, keep living, keep rejoicing. He expects you not simply to face the future; He expects you to embrace and shape the future—to love it, rejoice in it, and delight in your opportunities.

"God is eagerly waiting for the chance to answer your prayers and fulfill your dreams, just as He always has. But He can’t if you don’t pray, and He can’t if you don’t dream. In short, He can’t if you don’t believe. (Jeffrey R. Holland, “This, the Greatest of All Dispensations,” Ensign, Jul 2007, 52–58)

They feel it vain to petition him, their faith breaking down. Such persons are dear to the Lord, and for me, feeling much the same, I am left to have a bit of a hope by listening continually to these talks found below. (Remember to download the audio, "right click" on the MP3 Icon for the "save target as" or similar option of your browser.)

 

"Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer," Elder Richard G. Scott, April 2007 General Conference.

"To Acquire Knowledge and the Strength to Use It Wisely," Richard G. Scott, January 23, 2001, BYU Devotional.

"To Learn and to Teach More Effectively," Richard G. Scott, August 21, 2007 Education Week Devotional

"Lessons from Liberty Jail," Jeffrey R. Holland, CES Fireside for Young Adults, September 7, 2008

"Be Not Afraid, Only Believe," Gordon B. Hinckley, CES Fireside for Young Adults, September 9, 2001. Video Here.

"Broken Things to Mend," by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, April 2006 General Conference.

It is suggested that these talks and others might be put in a playlist and listened to over and over again by those struggling to feel that God cares or is mindful of us in our daily struggles to be in alignment with His will. These will help bolster faith to continue on, and learn to be soft, meek and submissive to our Divine Parent, rather than become wroth, bitter, and angry.

(You might use the Feedback form on LDS.org to plead that they will give a much better audio segment to the 2001 talk by Gordon B. Hinckley, which currently is streaming audio of poor quality. Perhaps it could be included in the list of CES Fireside Podcasts that are much better quality.)