Receiving Answers To Prayers

In Elder Kyle S McKay's talk, The Immediate Goodness of God, he mentioned the example of the people of Alma in coming to know God. To provide context into their experience, this people of Alma were part of a group of Nephites that left the land of Zarahemla to live near the Lamanites. They wanted to live there because it was near where they had settled first upon arriving in the Americas.

The larger group of people fell away from the Gospel, but the people of Alma were the people who repented after being taught the Gospel again. They began to follow Christ, and as a result, their king labeled them traitors and sent his army to attack them (see Mosiah 18). They fled, leaving their houses and lands to escape with their lives. In Mosiah 23 & 24 we read that they began to establish a new home for themselves, building buildings, working the land, and it was quickly becoming a city of their own. As they began to prosper, a Lamanite army found them and subjugated them, including attempting to take away their religious freedom.

They prayed fervently for deliverance, and the Lord promised them that He would ease the burdens on their backs. Later, after demonstrating great faith and patience, they were miraculously delivered from the Lamanites, again leaving behind their homes and lands in order to escape with their lives and freedom. Shortly thereafter they reunited with the Nephites, and shared their experiences with them. Elder McKay related:

The people of Zarahemla marveled, and “when they thought of the immediate goodness of God, and his power in delivering Alma and his brethren out of … bondage, they did raise their voices and give thanks to God.”

 (He is quoting Mosiah 25:10)

I have noticed in my own life that if I pray, but I'm really only wanting to hear the answer I want, it's much harder for me to recognize answers to my prayers. These, the people of Alma, recognized the Lord's help in their lives instead of asking why they lost everything twice after returning to Him.

I'm amazed at the faith that these people had to receive answers to prayers; I'm amazed that they looked at their lives and told their story in a way that caused people to see the "immediate goodness of God" instead of focusing on their many trials.

What if the people of Alma had only been willing to accept deliverance as an answer to their prayers, or only deliverance with immediate prosperity? They could have justified themselves and said there was no point in following the Lord because of their suffering. They could have become exhausted and turned away from the Gospel. I'm grateful they didn't; I feel like their example is a great reminder that we cannot demand our Father's intervention in our lives and control how He intervenes. I have found it personally more fulfilling and instructive to look for how He intervenes. It has helped me begin to understand that God's love doesn't mean my life will always go how I want, and that having trials does not mean His love is absent.