“Pray Always”

It’s been a pretty intense month in our family. We moved again to a new home in West Haven, UT (after 5 moves in the last 3 years, I hope that was the last one for a LONG time!). Normally I can handle moving okay, but I’ve never done it while working fulltime before. And it definitely felt like I was in over my head for a little while. But what I loved about the whole process was watching how the Lord got me through it. It still makes me smile just thinking about it.

This time around, I knew I needed an extra measure of grace to help me deal with all the needs and demands that kept coming at me in waves. But I didn’t have time to immerse myself in the scriptures or attend extra temple sessions or any of that. As it turns out, there was one simple principle of the gospel that became my lifeline and helped me rise up and walk on the water when I really should have been drowning. It’s summed up in one short little scripture from the pen of Nephi:

Pray always and not faint. In other words, “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17). Don’t ever stop. Just keep praying all the time, no matter what else you’re doing. The thought almost seems impossible. But over and over in the scriptures, we hear the same idea. In fact, the phrase “pray always” is found over 50 times in the Standard Works.

Some of my favorite verses on this pop up in the Book of Mormon. In Alma 13:28, we’re directed to “pray continually.” Alma 37:37 instructs us to “counsel with the Lord in all [our] doings.” And Ammon also talks about praying continually without ceasing (Alma 26:22). It even says in Mosiah 26:39 that we’re “commanded of God to pray without ceasing.”

You may wonder like I have how we can do that when we have so much going on in our daily lives. You’d think with the month I just had, I would’ve had a hard time keeping this commandment. But for me, it became possible only because the Lord taught me to look at prayer in a whole new way. And that’s what made all the difference.

In earlier years, prayer for me was very formal. Each time I prayed, I was on my knees, head bowed, eyes closed, following the pattern I’d been taught. I repeated similar phrases, thanked Him for blessings, and asked for the things I needed. And that’s not a bad thing at all. You have to start somewhere when learning to pray. But if we think that’s what it has to look like every time, the phrase “pray always” may leave us scratching our head and wondering how we can keep such a strange commandment.

I believe the key can be found in a verse from Alma 34:27: “Yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare.” I love that, in the end, it’s a heart thing. To have a heart “drawn out” to the Lord continually takes us to a whole new level. It suddenly becomes very personal and very immediate and exactly what we need in this chaotic and crazy world.

Praying always means I’m turning my thoughts to Him and talking to Him when I’m driving. When I’m getting ready in the morning. Or when I’m walking through Walmart. And it’s even more crucial when I’m feeling angry or tired or discouraged or depressed or overwhelmed. Praying always means I don’t wait until I get the situation managed—I talk to Him right then . . . right as I’m going through it. If things are falling apart around me, I’m asking in my heart for strength or patience or whatever I need to help me cope. And He grants it. It’s such a beautiful thing that I can reach for the Lord’s grace every minute of every day, no matter what I may be going through. He’s right there to get me through it with His peace and His strength and His ability to calm any kind of storm in my life.

Really, what other relationship do we have like that? My husband can’t be with me and help me 24/7. Yes, I know we can reach out for the support of others when needed, but I’m finding there’s nothing in the world like praying without ceasing. Nothing like having a heart “drawn out in prayer unto Him continually.” And it’s not only that we can receive what we need the minute we need it. It’s also that it draws us immensely closer to the Lord because we’re thinking about Him and relying on Him continually throughout the day. And that kind of closeness bonds our heart to His in a way that’s very hard to describe. I believe it’s the way we become “encircled about eternally in the arms of his love” (2 Ne. 1:15).

I have to say, I’m absolutely hooked on this idea. It’s become one of my favorite things to do. Yesterday at work, I had a moment when I was tired and ready to go home and totally out of gas. And I felt that spark in my heart drawing me to tell Him all about it. So I did. And in that moment, His strength and joy filled me and reignited that fire inside. And it carried me through the rest of a hard day as I continued to think of Him. As I continued to rely on Him. The process really is addicting. These private moments of connection between Him and I are incredibly precious to me. I’ve decided that praying without ceasing isn’t a chore or a duty or even just a commandment to keep—it’s one of the greatest privileges and most beautiful gifts we could ever be offered. I’ll conclude with these inspiring words from C.S. Lewis that sum up my thoughts perfectly: