Pray Continually

In his conference address last weekend, President Eyring spoke about prayer. He made this observation about today’s world: “Yet despite turmoil and difficulty, faithful Latter-day Saints in hardship across the world have flooded heaven with prayers. In public and in private, they are petitioning the Lord for help, for comfort, for direction, and for personal peace for those they love. You may have seen in your congregations and in your homes that prayers have not only been more numerous but more heartfelt.” His comment invites us to consider whether our own prayers are more numerous and heartfelt as we are faced with more challenges. It also reminds me of this description of the Savior in the Garden of Gethsemane: “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Luke 22:44). I like the fact that this verse number is twice that of the chapter number, suggesting perhaps a need for redoubling our efforts in prayer. If the Savior could pray more earnestly, then surely we can too. To do so does not require us to use more sophisticated language or dramatically increase the length of our formal prayers. President Eyring taught, “Opening the windows of heaven through fervent prayer does not require the use of many words or flowery language. Rather, the diligence in prayer which Heavenly Father requires of us is to ‘pour out [our] souls’ in private places and have our hearts ‘drawn out in prayer unto him continually.’” What matters most, as always, is the heart.

President Eyring encouraged us to not just pray fervently in times of need but to always have a prayer in our heart. He said, “We can follow His commandment to ‘pray always’ by having a continual prayer in our hearts…. As we pray continually, no matter the circumstances of life, the Lord will offer us His peace and abiding support…. Consistent prayer during joyous times and also during seasons of distress and grief will surely be rewarded according to His will and perfect timing.” I remember hearing someone once describe how the prayers in our hearts should be such throughout the day that by the time we go to bed about all we need to say is “amen” to our supplications to the Lord all the day long. Alma gave this invitation to the people of Ammonihah that surely were meant for all of us: “But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be led by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, meek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering” (Alma 13:28). To learn to watch and pray continually is surely a lifelong pursuit for the disciple of Christ, and President Eyring’s message is a reminder to strive for that kind of communication with the Lord.

            When I try to talk to my older children about what they did at school or during the day, I usually get a very terse answer like “stuff” or “things” or “it was school.” To get actual details is very rare, and so I was grateful when one of them opened up to me in a car ride recently telling me all about their feelings on something. If I as a very imperfect father want to hear more from my own children, surely our Father in Heaven wants to hear more from us through prayer. And He probably doesn’t want terse communication either; I think He wants the kind of communication that Amulek invited us to make with Him: “Ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.” As we open our souls to Him through heartfelt prayer, we have this simple promise from President Eyring: “I testify that the Lord hears and answers the prayers of our hearts…. The feelings of your heart and the love for our Heavenly Father and for His Beloved Son can be so constant that your prayers will ascend always.”