Call On His Name

Alma spoke to the people of Ammonihah concerning the future of the Lamanites and told them this, “And at some period of time they will be brought to believe in his word, and to know of the incorrectness of the traditions of their fathers; and many of them will be saved, for the Lord will be merciful unto all who call on his name” (Alma 9:17). By this time many of them had been converted by the preaching of the sons of Mosiah and their brethren, though Alma may not have known it. Indeed, in very similar language Mormon summarized the missionary efforts among the Lamanites this way, “Yea, by the power of their words many were brought before the altar of God, to call on his name and confess their sins before him” (Alma 17:4). The key was for them to truly call on His name. Mormon used this language again as he described how as Ammon taught the people of Lamoni, “they did call on the name of the Lord, in their might.” Because of this, “The Lord did begin to pour out his Spirit upon them” and from their experience Mormon testified, “And we see that his arm is extended to all people who will repent and believe on his name” (Alma 19:16, 36). The Lord is merciful to all those who will call on His name, and Aaron taught this as well to the father of Lamoni, “If thou desirest this thing, if thou wilt bow down before God, yea, if thou wilt repent of all thy sins, and will bow down before God, and call on his name in faith, believing that ye shall receive, then shalt thou receive the hope which thou desirest.” With faith and repentance and calling on the name of the Lord, the Lord heard the king and ultimately was “converted unto the Lord” (Alma 22:16, 23).

The scriptures witness over and over that those who call on the name of the Lord through sincere prayer are heard and helped by Him. Alma invited the people of Ammonihah, “But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually” (Alma 13:28). Amulek later invited the Zoramites in these words, “Therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye may begin to exercise your faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you” (Alma 34:17). In our dispensation the Lord has similarly invited us: “Pray unto the Lord, call upon his holy name” (Doctrine and Covenants 65:4). Though the Lord may not always grant exactly what we desire, He will always offer mercy to those who call on His holy name. We cannot overlook the simple power of sincere prayer when we need help and mercy from the Lord. I was reminded of this two days ago as I was driving with my daughter and suddenly found that my car was acting very strange, and I realized that I was just about out of gas. I was stopped at an intersection and was sure it was going to die any second. The gas station was about one minute away, and I fervently prayed while waiting for the light to turn that I could make it. The car wouldn’t even shift as I drove past the light, but it clunked its way along and I barely made it into the gas station. It was yet another witness to me that there is power in calling on the name of the Lord, and He does show mercy to us in all our challenges as we plead for His help and strength. Mormon summarized the power of calling on the name of the Lord this way: “Thus we may see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name” (Helaman 3:27).