CH2 - Living a Higher Law: Prayer in your heart always

[Joanie]

On pg. 18 he quotes a scripture from 3 Nephi about praying always with your families and watching and praying always to avoid temptation. In the next paragraph he says "this is what is meant by having a prayer in our hearts always." Was that clear to you? How do you have a prayer in your hearts always?

I have always tried to focus on what Jesus and Heavenly Father want me to do. Then, as I am going through the day I just talk to God (kind of like Tevye (sp?) in Fiddler on the Roof) and ask for guidance and help before I move on. Is that having a prayer in my heart?

I'd love your thoughts...

[foxyroxy]

I'd say you are on the right track. I've always thought it means to think of Jesus often and try to focus your attention to what he would have you do. I'm not always good at this but I also try to pray that I can have a prayer in my heart. Thanks for your insight.

[5ft Diva]

Well, seeing how prayer is our way of talking to God I'd say that you're exactly right, Joanie. To "Always have a prayer in your heart", to me means that I converse/consult with God throughout the day. I will often ask him to give me confidence, I ask for validation, I seek for guidance, patience or understanding for individuals, I ask for him to teach me and guide me through a situation that is completely foreign to me, I share my frustrations with him, I feel like I'm constantly apologizing for good intentions that are presented badly, I thank Him for little moments throughout the day that bring me happiness, I thank Him for the small and simple ways that He communicates His love to me, when the Spirit communicates something to me I usually have a question to throw right back so I can better understand what I'm being taught. Anyway, those are just a few examples of what it's like for me to have a prayer in my heart all day. You probably do the same. Good discussion topic!

[Erudite]

I also appreciated Dr. Lund's mention of this because it confirmed a definition I'd written out for myself about it a long time ago. At the time, it was something I thought I'd better understand since it is mentioned numerous times throughout the gospel. Here's the definition I wrote out (it is part of a larger work) and it is just the same as you guys describe:

Praying without ceasing (3 Nephi 19:24) blesses our lives and helps us to take upon ourselves the identity of Jesus as we do even as He did. Praying without ceasing stops us before we say the wrong thing, guides us to help others, and opens our eyes to the miracles all around us. Though it is not an easy task, it is the only way to be able to make permanent, Christ-like changes in our lives. How do we pray without ceasing? Praying without ceasing isn’t so much a conversation with the Father, as our specific prayers should be, as it is a conversation with ourselves about how the Father would have us be. It is a conversation with the Spirit in helping us to see what we must become, how to do it, and what to avoid or overcome. Praying without ceasing is a constant thought process that involves evaluating our thoughts, words, and deeds, and attempting to align them with our Heavenly Father’s will. This is also a major part of the Savior’s identity. Jesus’ goal is to follow the will of His Father. When we pray without ceasing with the goal of following our Heavenly Father’s will, we take on part of Jesus’ identity. Isaiah gives further understanding to this idea when he says in 26:3-4

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.”

As we keep our minds “stayed” on the gospel, on our learning, on our teaching, on growing as our Father would have us grow, we are praying without ceasing, even as Jesus did.

I know that I too can use work in this area, but when I do well at it, it is an amazing thing.

[Joanie]

Wow! That is awesome. I've never taken the time to really study it out like you have. Thank you for sharing your definition with me.