During the past four years of teaching the 11-year-old primary class at church, I’ve had the rare pleasure of discussing the topic “What You Are Allowed to Pray About.” I like to run down a list of subjects and then let the students vote with a hand-raise as to whether it’s “okay” to pray about it or not. The list usually looks something like this:
- To repent
- To know the church is true
- To know whether to marry someone or not
- Whether to move to another city
- Which job to take
- If the Book of Mormon is true
- To make more money
- To get a better job
- For a sick person to become well
- To find something you’ve lost
It’s extraordinarily typical for most students to vote “YES” for spiritual things or for someone’s health and to vote “NO” when it comes to anything worldly like making more money or getting a better job. I often get the sense that they think it would be “wrong” to do something like that. I’m guessing that they base their voting on what they’re accustomed to hearing people pray about and likely assume that if people aren’t praying about it in public…well, it’s probably wrong!
At the end of this exercise, I always like to share one of my favorite scriptures from the Book of Mormon. It’s found in Alma 34:17-27. The items we are instructed to pray for (at least in this passage–there are more in others) are highlighted in bold below:
Therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye may begin to exercise your faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you.
Yea, cry unto him for mercy; for he is mighty to save.
Yea, humble yourselves, and continue in prayer unto him.
Cry unto him when ye are in your fields, yea, over all your flocks.
Cry unto him in your houses, yea, over all your household, both morning, mid-day, and evening.
Yea, cry unto him against the devil, who is an enemy to all righteousness.
Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper in them.
Cry unto him over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase.
But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.
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, and also for the welfare of those who are around you.
I then point out two things. First, in 74 B.C. they didn’t have jobs and paychecks, so praying that their crops would prosper and that their flocks would increase would have been the same as us praying for more money or a better job in our time. Second, I refer them to the chapter heading and the phrase that correlates to this scripture. It clearly instructs us to, “Pray for temporal and spiritual blessings.”
Another passage I always share has to do with the importance of asking for what we want. This comes from “Prayer” in the Bible Dictionary:
The object of prayer is not to change the will of God, but to secure for ourselves and for others blessing that God is already willing to grant, but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them.
So according to Amulek, it is acceptable to pray for money and prosperity. And according to the Bible Dictionary, there’s the possibility that receiving these temporal blessings depends upon our asking for them.
A few years ago, I wanted to go to a Rich Dad, Poor Dad seminar in Los Angeles. I didn’t have the money to go, so I decided to pray about it. I prayed very specifically for what I wanted. My prayer went something like this, “Dear Heavenly Father, I want to go to this real estate conference but I don’t have the money. Please let someone send me a check in the mail that I am not expecting that will cover the $395 for the seminar.”
I don’t recall how often I prayed or even if I prayed more than once. But my prayer was answered exactly as I had asked…and more.
After a couple weeks, I received a check in the mail. It was a refund check from our insurance company. I was so excited that I went to tell my husband about my answered prayer. While he thought my faith was great, he disqualified part of my criteria by admitting that he knew the check was coming and had been expecting it. I was disappointed but NOT doubtful.
As it turns out, Heavenly Father knows us individually. With this unique and personal knowledge of who we are, He answers ourprayers in ways that He knows we will understand and recognize. And that is exactly what happened to me.
In looking at the check I’d received, I noticed that it was signed by a man named “Mark J. Benedictus.” I knew that benedictus was Latin for something. So, being the English major that I am, I got out the dictionary and started thumbing through the pages. Here’s what I found:
Benedictus–Latin, past participle of benedicere, to bless; see “benediction”
Benediction–the expression of good wishes; the invocation of a blessing
I then took it one step further and looked up the name “Mark.” Among the long list of definitions, these stood out most to me:
Mark–sign, indication; a written or printed symbol; attention, notice; a lasting or strong impression
Tears came to my eyes as I realized that Heavenly Father had prepared a special message just for me. That, in spite of my husband’s having expected the check, I had in my hands a solid confirmation that Heavenly Father had heard and answered my prayers, that He knew me, and that He was keenly aware of what words would capture my attention. I had a direct message that the check I had received was a “sign and symbol of His blessing and good wishes.”
We are living in difficult times. Many of us are struggling financially. But at the same time, I’m concerned about how many of us adults–like the children in my primary class–hesitate to pray about money or other temporal blessings necessary to meet our needs. We may all hesitate for different reasons: lack of hope, a feeling that it’s wrong, a belief that Heavenly Father doesn’t care about money and won’t be willing to answer. I’m not guaranteeing that He will, because your faith plays a bigger part than the words you pray. What I do know is that He has. He has answered my prayers more times than I can count. And I know of many other miraculous stories of answered prayers about temporal blessings.
So if you’ve considered praying about money but haven’t brought yourself to do so, I encourage you to take the leap. Don’t pray for every challenge to be solved with some giant windfall. But be specific about a modest need that it is important for you to meet. Pray in faith and with a knowledge that Heavenly Father isn’t stingy with money the way we are…it’s all His to give, after all.
As the beloved hymn says, “So, when life gets dark and dreary, don’t forget to pray.” And I’ll add, “about whatever it is that’s making life dark and dreary…even Money.”
The Consecrated Heart 