Prayers Are Answered

A couple of weekends ago, like so many of you, we gathered together as a family to watch General Conference. One of the things I like about Conference is that each person can get something different from the talks. Something that relates to what one is currently going through and thinking about. A personal insight and sometimes an answer.

This year I was particularly touched by two different talks. The first was by Neil L. Anderson entitled Children.  In this he states, In our day prophets and apostles have declared, “The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force.” 

This commandment has not been forgotten or set aside in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We express deep gratitude for the enormous faith shown by husbands and wives (especially our wives) in their willingness to have children. When to have a child and how many children to have are private decisions to be made between a husband and wife and the Lord. These are sacred decisions—decisions that should be made with sincere prayer and acted on with great faith.

This is how my husband and I have always approached the decision to have more children. In fact it is the only way we have been able to have the children we have. I have needed a strong feeling of peace and a lot of faith to make it through each pregnancy.

As many of you know this current pregnancy was a little bit of a surprise for us but definitely not an answer to prayer.  The decision of how many children we were to have has been on our minds a lot over the last couple of years. With each of our previous children before we had them we felt very strongly that we were to have another. In thinking about and praying if we were to have any more children we never really felt like were to have another so we kind of felt like we were done. For me, though, I would often come back to, Are we really done? And wonder if we had been given an answer to prayer. We never felt very strongly that we were to have another child but also never felt a strong confirmation that we were done.  And I knew that I had a strong desire to never go through another pregnancy.

It is now obvious we weren't done and I wondered a lot lately,  Were we just ignoring inspiration? Not in a position to receive it? Not really wanting the Lord's will?

As I listened during conference to this talk by Robert D. Hales I had some of these concerns addressed.  I realized that we had been honestly seeking an answer to prayer but were waiting on the Lord for our prayer to be answered. As Elder Hales stated, What, then, does it mean to wait upon the Lord? In the scriptures, the word wait means to hope, to anticipate, and to trust. To hope and trust in the Lord requires faith, patience, humility, meekness, long-suffering, keeping the commandments, and enduring to the end. That was exactly what we were doing.

Elder Hales then stated,  In my life I have learned that sometimes I do not receive an answer to a prayer because the Lord knows I am not ready. When He does answer, it is often “here a little and there a little” because that is all that I can bear or all I am willing to do. As I look back I also know that was exactly what was happening with us. That was why I was often still questioning and seeking a confirmation of if we were done having children. I also know he was gradually softening my heart until I was ready.

When we first found out we were pregnant there was a lot of peace that came. As I have thought about things I have realized this was the Lord's way of answering our prayer.

I know the Lord answers prayers. Sometimes he answers right away and then the trial is trusting in that answer. As I listened to a story, shared in the first talk mentioned, of a couple who knew another child was to come but that child didn't come for eight years I was reminded of a time with one of children where this was the case. While we didn't wait years it was a trail to trust in the answer that immediately came while waiting to get pregnant. Other times the trial comes in waiting upon the Lord for the answer and most often having our hearts changed in that waiting process.

One of my concerns or reasons I was thinking we were done having kids was a worry for my other children. I worried I wouldn't be capable of meeting their needs if I was physically suffering either from morning sickness or exhaustion from late nights with a newborn. During a time of prayer when I expressed these concerns I felt on overwhelming assurance that my kids would be fine. I have seen answer to that prayer through these last few months. Now I have to just trust in that answer when we have a newborn and dealing with late night feedings plus late night homework help and chat sessions. Thank goodness we have a few months to prepare for that.