"But it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound.
And it came to pass that when I had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed from off my hands and feet, and I stood before my brethren and I spake unto them again."
1 Nephi 7:17-18
I think it is interesting here that Nephi prays for one thing (that he would be able to burst the bands) and gets another (the bands are loosed). To me, this shows that God doesn’t just hear the *words* of our prayers, but the thoughts and intentions behind them. He sees the entire picture… even the subconscious connections. And, thank goodness, he answers that prayer… the complete one, with all attached thoughts, desires, and intentions. And then, of course, he includes his purposes… what do we need to learn? What do we need spiritually, emotionally, physically, and mentally? … I think it is astounding that God considers absolutely everything as he answers our prayers… I know, what should I expect from an omniscient being, but still… it just is overwhelming to think about. I imagine ways to overcome the communication difficulties that we all have… Nancy Kress (a Science Fiction author) writes about this hologram program that some people in her books invented that shows all the subconscious connections when you verbalize something… so you can get closer to seeing the true meaning of anything. We strain at these ideas, and God already has it all… it’s great.
It’s a good reason to make sure that our lives are in tune. Because God has already invented everything that we think is cool… and the desires of our hearts can only be fulfilled through him… Earthly things are just SO pale and insubstantial in comparison. (Which is NOT to say that we shouldn’t try to improve the Earth… just that we shouldn’t idealize it either.)
And it came to pass that when I had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed from off my hands and feet, and I stood before my brethren and I spake unto them again."
1 Nephi 7:17-18
I think it is interesting here that Nephi prays for one thing (that he would be able to burst the bands) and gets another (the bands are loosed). To me, this shows that God doesn’t just hear the *words* of our prayers, but the thoughts and intentions behind them. He sees the entire picture… even the subconscious connections. And, thank goodness, he answers that prayer… the complete one, with all attached thoughts, desires, and intentions. And then, of course, he includes his purposes… what do we need to learn? What do we need spiritually, emotionally, physically, and mentally? … I think it is astounding that God considers absolutely everything as he answers our prayers… I know, what should I expect from an omniscient being, but still… it just is overwhelming to think about. I imagine ways to overcome the communication difficulties that we all have… Nancy Kress (a Science Fiction author) writes about this hologram program that some people in her books invented that shows all the subconscious connections when you verbalize something… so you can get closer to seeing the true meaning of anything. We strain at these ideas, and God already has it all… it’s great.
It’s a good reason to make sure that our lives are in tune. Because God has already invented everything that we think is cool… and the desires of our hearts can only be fulfilled through him… Earthly things are just SO pale and insubstantial in comparison. (Which is NOT to say that we shouldn’t try to improve the Earth… just that we shouldn’t idealize it either.)
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