To The Unknown God

Prayer is such an interesting thing. For some, it is an absolutely vital part of their day to day experience, and they can't imagine how they would survive without it. For others, even many that believe in God, it is utterly meaningless. Many don't pray, nor do they have any interest in it. Others feel they should pray, but they either don't know how or something else stops them. Some pray, but their words are empty, devoid of any real thought or sincerity. And there are some for whom prayer is nearly always true communion with God, filling them with both peace and power. If you are like me, however, you may have spent a little time in all of these groups throughout your life and you often find yourself phasing in and out periods of meaningful prayer and prayers that seem to bounce right back off the ceiling.

In praying I sometimes feel a bit like the moon, ever running in circles, trying desperately to shine a little light on the dark areas of this mortal experience, but spending most of the time not getting the angle quite right. There are times when I stand in just the right place and I feel the full splendor of the sun rushing across my face, giving both form and familiarity where there had previously been only blackness. Then shortly after that moment of celestial clarity, the "co-motion" (D&C 88:91) of me and my target sends me whirling again through space, hoping to catch just a few more brightly beams of Our Father's mercy.

I often ask, is it possible to break free from whatever gravity keeps me in this never ending orbit, cycling in and out of powerful prayer? If it is possible, how? What do I need? Though there are likely to be multiple things that I need, the older I get the more I feel that a real belief in the true characteristics of God is a vital part of breaking orbit. Here are just a few of His traits that have helped change my prayers for the better:

• Truly believing that God is our Father and that He loves us with a perfect love.
• Believing that He has the past, present, and future continually before him (D&C 130:7, Moses 1:6).
• Believing that He really is the Almighty, having power to do whatever is necessary.
• Believing that He truly does have perfect wisdom and that His timing will always be right.
• Believing that He really can make "all things work together for [our] good" (Romans 8:28, D&C 98:3).
• Truly believing that He has the ability to hear our prayers among all His other children and that He will answer you at the perfect time and in the perfect way.

Having been taught that God has these traits is one thing, really believing it is something very different. But it is the true belief in these traits, taking them at face value, that makes all the difference in the world in how we approach prayer. That is why Moroni counsels that, before we pray, we should ponder on "how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down to the time that" we kneel at our bedside, or sit in the car after work, or wait up at night for a child to come home.

Paul taught the people of Athens the true characteristics of the "UNKNOWN GOD" that they ignorantly worshiped (Acts 17:22-29). Moroni taught that miracles cease, including the miracle of powerful prayer, when people "know not the God in whom they should trust" (Mormon 9:20). May we seek to know our Father's character and truly believe in Him as we try to improve our prayers. I am confident that as we do this we will spend more time in the light of the Son.