That we will hear Him

"The value of consistent prayer is not that He will hear us,

 but that we will hear Him."

I Can't Find My Keys!

by Hilary Weeks

Do you know someone who is always happy, never sad,

always looking on the bright side of things, never down on life?

I have only ever met one or two people who claim to be that happy all the time. 

Actually, now that I think about it, I can only name one person.  And technically, I don’t “know” her. 

I can’t remember her name, but I heard her speak at Women’s Conference several years ago and her topic was being happy.  She said she was the type of person that was just always happy. Simple as that – she was just a happy, happy person. That stuck with me.

I admit it.

I’m not like that.  Wish I was…

My emotions are, how shall I say it, a little less “structured.”  I remember a period of a couple weeks last year when I had the blues.  There were three things that helped to restore a little sunshine to my spirits.

The first was prayer.  I kept right on praying – even when I didn’t necessarily feel like it .  I prayed that Heavenly Father would lift my spirits.  I pleaded with Him to get me through the blues.  And…I felt Him near me.  I felt His support and the whisperings of the Holy Ghost getting me through.

Second was gratitude.  One Sunday during this “blues” period,

we talked about gratitude in Sacrament Meeting and then again in Sunday school. 

Elder Cook, who is in our ward, said

“If we want to overcome sorrow and chase away the blues we need to count our blessings. 

We need to not just let them run through our minds,

but run through our hearts.”

Now that was a tender mercy – hearing those wonderful words of advice while attending Sunday school. 

Elder Cook didn’t know how I was feeling, but Heavenly Father did and He knew how to communicate something to me through someone else.

Later that Sunday night, at a Young Women’s program,

the Bishop talked about the one thing we all search for in life, above anything else.  Guess what it was?

Happiness.

As the Bishop spoke, another tender mercy unfolded.  He said the key to being happy is to have the Spirit with us.  Taking the Sacrament is key to having the Spirit with us always.  I realized that because of a family vacation and sickness I had missed the last three Sundays in a row.  It had been three weeks since I had taken the Sacrament.  That had definitely affected my happiness.  What a blessing to have the gospel in our lives and to see ourselves, our lives, even our emotions through its light.  The gospel provides answers and solutions.

Three keys to happiness.

Prayer.  Gratitude.  The Sacrament.

"Sometimes, the Lord sends His blessings in such a highly unusual,

dramatic, or precisely timed manner that it's as if the Lord 'signs'

the blessing personally so we know with a certainty that it came from Him."

Gerald Lund

"Prayer is more than words; it requires faith, effort, and a proper attitude".

Marion G Hanks