Make
Prayers Meaningful
There
are many reasons our prayers may lack power. Sometimes they become routine. Our
prayers become hollow when we say similar words in similar ways over and over
so often that the words become more of a recitation than a communication. This
is what the Savior described as “vain repetitions” (see Matt. 6:7). Such
prayers, He said, will not be heard.
Our
beloved prophet, President Gordon B. Hinckley, has observed:
“The
trouble with most of our prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up
the telephone and ordering groceries—we place our order and hang up. We need to
meditate, contemplate, think of what we are praying about and for and then
speak to the Lord as one man speaketh to another.”
Do
your prayers at times sound and feel the same? Have you ever said a prayer
mechanically, the words pouring forth as though cut from a machine? Do you
sometimes bore yourself as you pray?
Will
prayers that do not demand much of your thought merit much attention from our
Heavenly Father? When you find yourself getting into a routine with your
prayers, step back and think. Meditate for a while on the things for which you
really are grateful. Look for them. They don’t have to be grand or glorious.
Sometimes we should express our gratitude for the small and simple things like
the scent of the rain, the taste of your favorite food, or the sound of a loved
one’s voice.
Thinking
of things we are grateful for is a healing balm. It helps us get outside
ourselves. It changes our focus from our pains and our trials to the abundance
of this beautiful world we live in.
Think
of those things you truly need. Bring your goals and your hopes and your dreams
to the Lord and set them before Him. Heavenly Father wants us to approach Him
and ask for His divine aid. Explain to Him the trials you are facing. Set
before Him your righteous desires.
Our
prayers can and should be focused on the practical, everyday struggles of life.
If we should pray over our crops (see Alma 34:24), then why not over other
important challenges we face?
Some
believe that the more eloquent a prayer, the more effective. Too often these
prayers are not so much meant for the ears of the Almighty as they are for the
ears of the audience. Do you want to commune with the Infinite? Then approach
Him with reverence and humility. Don’t worry so much about whether your words
are polished or not. Worry instead about speaking from your heart.( Joseph B.
Wirthlin, "Improving
Our Prayers," devotional address given at Brigham Young
University—Provo, January 21, 2003, repr., Ensign [March 2004])