Copyright © 1999
You can know your God/Higher Power (HP). To gain this knowledge you must have faith. Faith that if you try to speak to your God/HP, He will hear and answer you. You prove your faith by experimenting or praying to your God/HP to see if He will answer you.
The best way to pray is to find a quiet secluded place where you can speak openly and out loud to your God/HP. Kneel and pray. If this is not possible you can pray silently anywhere, under any condition. A quiet place is best however, because it allows you to be able to wait silently for an answer.
If you get a burning of the bosom - like sunshine and happiness filling your chest, a peaceful feeling, or you just know that what you are thinking is right because you feel good inside; then you have a "yes" answer. Other times your mind will feel fuzzy, tired, or you may forget the thoughts you had. This is called a stupor of thought. It is also an answer to your prayer. It is a "No" answer. If you get this answer, pray again for guidance to understand your God's/HP's will for you. Then go through steps 2 and 3 again. Do this until you come up with a "yes" answer.
Sometimes words or thoughts come to your mind. You must ask your God/HP if you should believe or act upon these thoughts. You will get the answer by the burning of the bosom or stupor of thought.
Praying to your God/HP is your only life line to Him. He has promised to safe guard your communications with Him from the tampering of other sources. That means, if you have gotten an answer from your God/HP and asked if you should act upon that information in an agreed upon way, then you can trust that information. That information should be acted upon even though it does not seem correct to you. Remember, you have limited sight of what is happening or what is to come. Have faith and trust in your God/HP and do what you are told. If you do, He will open doors you never knew existed because you were willing to follow Him in faith.
As you communicate often with your God/HP and follow His instructions, you will gain a deep and meaningful relationship with Him. Answers come faster. Inspiration, insight, or intuition comes often to guide you. It is best to consult your God/HP each morning to thank Him/Her for your blessings such as your rest and for His protection through the night. Then ask Him to guide you and your family's decisions for the day, to do your best, keep you and your loved ones safe and healthy, help bad situations turn out well for your sake, and for you to be a tool in His hand to help others. Remember not to do all the talking. Leave a quiet space of time for Him to reply to your questions.
At night thank Him for His help throughout the day. Remember, all good comes from your Higher Power so thank Him for all the things you can see He has done for you. Evaluate your activities of the day with Him, talk over your problems, plan ways you can be a better person, or do things better. Remember to listen for His answers.
With a spark of faith you can gain a testimony of your God/HP and His will for you. Gaining a testimony has two parts. It involves asking in prayer and acting upon the knowledge you have received in prayer and through the scriptures. John 7: 17 states: "If any man will do the will of the Father, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." Knowing the doctrine means studying the scriptures and asking your Higher Power their meaning for you. Gaining a testimony of your God/HP is not a single event but a process. It begins with faith, grows with study of the scriptures, obedience to the laws you find in the scriptures, and through service to others.
Your testimony and association with your God/HP will help you find the correct path for you through your life. It will bring great joy to you. It can also bring great comfort when bad things happen. Bad things happen to everyone. Even you when doing your best to follow what your Higher Power expects of you. Often these events are accompanied by ugly thoughts suggesting that your God/HP doesn't care for you or that He does not exist. Other thoughts would suggest that you should not pray to your God/HP but curse and hate Him. Know that these are the wrong things you should be listening to or acting upon. To rid yourself of these destructive thoughts read the scriptures, pray for help, play music that is uplifting and consciously listen to the words, sing, or go over the lyrics to a song you know in your thoughts.
If you trust in your God/HP, even in the bad times, He will help you to get through them. He will strengthen you and your faith in Him, and help things to be even better than they would have been. Do not expect these promises to happen overnight. The trial of your faith may be long and awful. Endure well, trust in your God/HP. Ask Him to stand by you and help you with what you need to get through these times. As you look back you will see He was there helping you all along.
A well known poem speaks of a person's sadness that your God/HP was not there in his darkest hours. The person states that in his darkest hours he looked back at the footsteps in the sand and saw only one set of tracks where two had been. He asks his your God/HP where He was when he needed Him. Your God/HP simply stated that when the person saw the two tracks end into one, He was caring him. Your God/HP will let us work through the bad times to grow our faith in Him and help us to become stronger individuals. He wants us to be the best we can be. We will be if we trust and follow Him.
Gene R. Cook, (1996) Receiving Answers to Our Prayers. Salt Lake City, Utah: Desert Book Company.
James (1979).James 2:20 & 4:8, Holy Bible. Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Smith, J. (1981).D&C 18:10, Doctrine of Covenants. Utah: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Ye May Know That He Is, Ensign, February 1997. Salt Lake City Utah: Salt Lake Distribution Center.
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