My sister gave me a wake up call when she said, "No, he wants you to ask for things so he can give them to you." I thought to myself how right she was. He wants to show us daily how wonderful and loving he is, he wants us to ask for things so he can demonstrate that he is God and he makes everything possible in our lives and that we are dependent upon him. Wow!
For a time I would tell myself that if something is God's will for me, he will make it happen. I don't need to ask for it because I don't want him to think I am greedy or selfish. He knows my goals and desires and I will just keep doing the best I can and just show him I'm grateful.
Well, I began to notice that though nothing bad was happening in my life, nothing amazing was happening either. Everything was at a standstill. Sure I was healthy and we had the things we needed so each day I thanked him for that. But life wasn't progressing. Business was at a standstill, my goals weren't going anywhere even though I spent a lot of time working on them. I wasn't having amazing spiritual experiences but I was going to the temple and doing all the things I was supposed to be. It felt very blah.
So, when my sister gave me this challenge I was so excited to try it out. She told me about her experiences and that each time she knelt down to ask for one specific thing, it happened within 24 hours or sooner. She then said that as soon as you recognize your prayer has been answered, you need to kneel down immediately and thank him. By doing this each day - your life will change and your testimony will grow.
So right after I got off the phone with her, I knelt down and gave it a try. My first prayer was on 5/16/13 and I recorded it in my prayer and gratitude journal. I keep track of my prayers that way I recognize when they are answered. So, I decided to keep it simple and I prayed that I would sell a book. I have a book distributor who sells my books and pays me royalties but I also have my own online bookstore where I sell my books. I haven't sold a paperback copy on there since fall of 2012.
Right after I ended my prayer the phone rang. It was my neighbor. She said, "Lindsey I was wondering if I could buy a book from you for my daughter's birthday" I couldn't believe it - I was smiling from ear to ear. That just goes to show that Heavenly Father is waiting to bless us but we just have to ask. I felt that he was just as excited to answer my prayer and show me how wonderful he is, as I was to have had it answered so quickly.
I called my sister back and said, "I'm ready to report on the challenge" she said "What?" and I told her how my first prayer had just been answered - that quick. She said, well now you need to kneel and thank him. So I got off the phone and that's what I did.
My neighbor who called me told me that the spirit had prompted her to mention some other things that I may have been in need of hearing. How right she was. There was something that had been stressing me out and she gave me the advice I needed to hear without even knowing about that issue. I felt that was a bonus tender mercy from the Lord to show me how much he cares.
My next prayer was about my song. I recorded a song last year, that I felt prompted to write and record but haven't known what to do with it since. I always thought, if it's the Lord's will he will make something come of it. So, I prayed that I could be given an opportunity to share my song with more people.
Later that day, I was cleaning out my spam email and I something caught my eye. I almost deleted it but something told me to open it - so I did. It was an email from a newer company called radioairplay.com and it was telling me that I could upload my song to their website and it would be heard on online radio stations around the world. So, I went to the website and saw that I had 150 free credits to start with. That meant my song would play 150 times for free. I was excited! During the week it showed me where my song was being played and who was listening. People became fans of my song and began to share it. It was amazing. God had again answered my prayer and I thanked him.
Later on, I took on a project of transferring my old family videos to the computer. I ran into several obstacles. The technology was so outdated that it wasn't compatible with any of my computers. So, on 5/22/13 I prayed that I could find a solution that day of what I would need to do. I then went to facebook and posted my technical issue. Later that night someone from my ward told me that there was a certain cable I would need, that apparently hasn't been in production for the last 5 years. She happened to have one and let me borrow it. It worked! Then it turned out the software was no longer compatible with the camera and I needed an old software from 2005. I happened to have the old software on an old tower but couldn't hook it up to my newer monitor. This same friend's husband emailed me a picture of the cord I would need to do this and by a miracle I found it hidden in a box in my house. I was so happy, I thanked the Lord!
The next day that old computer tower broke! I prayed that it would be a simple fix so I wouldn't have to spend any money repairing it. I took it in and they blew it out all the dust and suddenly the fan was working again and the tower no longer overheated - it was fixed!
So, in summary - I can personally testify that when we ask for something very specific the Lord answers. I have prayed for small and simple things but nothing is impossible for the Lord. I challenge you to try it as well. Pray for simple things that are important to you and see what happens - always pray for the bigger things as well - but sometimes those things take time. Praying for small and simple things isn't frivolous to the Lord and he is happy to bless you with those things.
I say this in the name of Jesus Christ amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment