All that is unspoken
And all that is unseen
All that I feel
In the depths of my soul
I long to give to Thee.
And all that You ask of me
And all that I am
I will place
On the altar of sacrifice
for Thee.
I give You my all
Like You gave Your all
Because hearts
Can give no more.
-
CATHRYNE
ALLEN
Book
Four (Psalms
90-106): Shifts focus to God’s eternal reign and comfort during hard times.
For
the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all
generations (100:5)
The
Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy (103:8)
For
as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that
fear him (103:11)
But
the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear
him…(103:17)
I
have noticed that the scriptures focus a lot on Christ’s greatest attribute,
that of mercy. I have also noticed that the medium the prophets have used for
this is the tradition of ‘remembering’. Even Psalms bring this to light. They
remind Israel to remember the Abrahamic covenant (105:9; 42) and their
deliverance from Egypt’s captivity (106:7,21).
God’s
admonition to ancient Israel to remember their deliverance from ‘the house of
bondage’ was so engrained in them that they took it to the new promised land in
ancient America. Some
notable references to this important part of their history in the Book of
Mormon are: 1 Nephi 4:2,3; 17:23-42; Mosiah 7:19; Alma 36:28-29. Remembering
became a legacy amongst God’s people. King Benjamin spoke of ‘remembering’ 15
times in his farewell speech to motivate his people to obedience to God (Mosiah
1:3,4,6,7,17; 2:40 twice, 41 twice; 4:11,28,30; 5:11,12; 6:3).
Remembering
God’s mercy in our lives brings us to accept His most notable role, that of
being an Advocate before the judgment bar of God: “…for he cometh to judge the
earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.”
(98:9)
When
we come before that judgment bar, we will need mercy more than ever before. This
mercy will be offered only to the penitent and is not to be used as excuse for
our lack of repentance, as a lot of people tend to do (see Alma 42:24,25; Ether
12:24; D&C 38:14; 50:16; 101:9)
I
used to think, through my study of the scriptures, that the Saviour was overly
merciful, especially to the House of Israel which He called the ‘backsliding’ ‘rebellious
house’ (see Jeremiah 3:6,8,11,12,14,22; Ezekiel 12:2,3,9,25). Then one year I
had a great insight into the Saviour’s mercy. I realised He could have never endured
the cross if it wasn’t for his abundant mercy towards those lesser than Him. It
was that mercy in Him that drove Him through the last leg of His suffering
journey.
“I
will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever……” (89:1)
Will
You come and carry me
When
all my strength is gone?
Will
Your mercy spill from You
When
I can walk no more?
Will
Your mercy lift me higher
To
glimpse my eternal home?
Will
I see my soul there
Before
Your gilded throne?
When
the sum of my life is done
Will
You bring me home to keep?
I’ll
want to kneel and honour You
Before
Your Mercy Seat.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
I
long to reside in Your presence;
To
never know sadness
Or
the wretched heat of my tears.
I
know I will be safe there
Where
fears cannot find me
And
trials cannot scar me.
I
know there will be safety
In
the shadow of Your wings
My
burdens You will lift
And
wipe away my sins.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
Book
Three (Psalms
73-89): Grapples with crisis, national pain, and the Babylonian exile.
The
seizure of Jerusalem by Babylon in 586 B.C. was horrific:
“The
siege lasted for eighteen months, during which time the people of Jerusalem
were starved to the point of cannibalism (see Lamentations 4:8-10). As the
final defences broke down and the Babylonians became victorious, King Zedekiah
and his army fled toward the Jordan River but were captured. He was forced to
watch as his family was murdered, and then the Babylonians put out his eyes and
took him captive to Babylon.
“The
city was burned, Solomon’s temple was destroyed, and the kingdom of Judah came
to an end. According to Jeremiah, the Babylonians took the remnant of the
people captive to Babylon except for some who were left behind under Babylonian
rule (see Jeremiah 39:8-10). Thus Nebuchadnezzar was able to control Judah by
keeping the leaders in captivity, and some few of the people were allowed to
remain behind to harvest the crops. The breakup and displacement of the Jews removed
the threat of national revival. (Old Testament Student Manual Book 2: The
Lasting Effects of the Fall and Captivity of Judah)
The
Book of Psalms lets us experience this painful event in Judah’s history first-hand
through the lamentation of Asaph:
“O
God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; they holy temple have they
defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps. How long, Lord? Wilt thou be angry
for ever? Shall thy jealousy burn like fire? For they have devoured Jacob and
laid waste his dwelling place. O remember not against us former iniquities; let
thy tender mercies speedily prevent us; for we are brought very low. Help us, O
God of our salvation for the glory of thy name; and deliver us, and purge away
our sins, for thy name’s sake. Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy
face to shine; and we shall be saved” (Psalm 79:1,5,7,8,9; Psalm 80:7).
I
literally cried reading this. There is a great lesson to be learnt in
repentance and that is that even forgiveness of our sins cannot wipe away
consequences. They serve a mighty purpose, the memory of suffering through them
deters a return to former sins:
“The
captivity had a profound effect on Judaism. Scholars almost universally agree
that the Jews never returned to image worship after the captivity. The fall of
Jerusalem was a great turning point in Israel’s religious life. From earliest
times the sin of idolatry had existed in Israel, and the prophets of every age
had combated it. After the fall, idolatry eased to be a problem for the Jews.
“The
captivity seemed to impress upon the minds of the Jewish people that the God of
Israel was, indeed, a jealous God. The prophets had been right in their
warnings of the doom and destruction that would follow if the people did not
repent and follow their God and Him only. The nation, as a whole, accepted the
verdict that God’s wrath had been poured down upon them for the sin of image
worship. They reached the conclusion that only the God of Israel should be
worshipped. Henceforth, Israel became a very zealous nation for its God. This
zeal took the form of devotion to Jehovah’s law, which led over the years to
the creation of numerous rules of conduct that went beyond the law itself. This
has been described as building “a hedge around the Law to render its
infringement or modification impossible” (Alfred Edersheim, The Life and
Times of Jesus the Messiah, 2 Vols.; Old Testament Student Manual 2: The
Lasting Effects of the Fall and Captivity of Judah)
The
captivity of Judah was like a cleansing fire that brought the nation to its
senses which purged the sin of idolatry from their very being. The Messianic Psalm
89 echoes the mercy, greatness, justice and judgment of the Holy One of Israel
and Judah’s vision of the coming of Messiah to restore the throne of David through
Christ, God’s Firstborn. What hope such
words must have been to the suffering of the souls of Judah’s nation in the midst
of their repentance:
“I
will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever: with my mouth will I make known
thy faithfulness to all generations. For who in the heaven can be compared unto
the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord? The
heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fulness
thereof, thou hast founded them. Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy
throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. For the Lord is our defence
and the Holy One of Israel is our king.” (Psalm 89:1,6,11,14,18)
The
scars of sin do not last forever. The sin is purged when sin is discarded and
our hearts are turned to Him who can make us whole again. He is our Saviour,
our Redeemer, our all…
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
Book Two (Psalms 42-72): Focuses on deliverance,
longing for God and kingship.
In
the words of C.S. Lewis: “The heart can and should obey the head”. David, the
King of Israel is concrete proof of these words. His transgression with Bath-Sheba
cost him dearly and led to many family and national tragedies. He spent the
rest of his life regretting what he did. In one psalm he expressed his mental
torment and pleaded for forgiveness:
“Have
mercy upon me, O God, according to thy loving kindness: according unto the
multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly
from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my
transgressions; and my sin is ever before me…..
“Create
in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not
away from thy presence, and take not thy holy spirit from me.” (Psalm 51:1-3, 10-11)
David
paid a high price for the example that he set for his children. That example
created so much turmoil and complexity within his family life that prophet
Nathan told him “the sword shall never depart from thine house” (2 Samuel
12:10).
Psalms
42-72 speaks a lot about David’s enemies and his supplication to God for
protection and deliverance. And this is the tragedy of all tragedies…..imagine
your greatest enemy coming from your own family. Many of us have family
conflict but what David experienced was another level of family strife.
David’s
example of following his bodily lust with Bath-Sheba played itself the second
time around with his first-born son and heir Amnon who developed a consuming
lust for his half sister Tamar. After the rape he rejected her and hated her
‘exceedingly’ (2 Samuel 13:15-22). Knowing that she had been disgraced and
would therefore be deprived of a husband, Tamar mourned in the manner of a
widow (vs 19,20). And she mourned for two years in the house of her brother
Absalom who took her under his protection.
David
was furious with Amnon but his own conduct with Bath-Sheba had left him without
basis for condemnation: “Because of his own guilt, David did not act to correct
this great abomination in his own household. David learned the sad lesson that
a man’s sins can often visit him even to the third and fourth generation (see
Exodus 34:7)” (Old Testament Student Manual Genesis – 2 Samuel, The Price of
Sin: Tragedy in the House of David)
After
two years of watching his sister mourn, Absalom was enraged that his father did
nothing to correct the injustice done to her so he took matters in his own
hands. He arranged the murder of his brother Amnon at the feast he held for the
annual sheep shearing and escaped to his grandfather’s home in Geshur (2 Samuel
13:23-39).
From
there things progressed so far that Absalom plotted to overthrow his father as
king. He began to act like a king and campaigned to gain favour with the people
and ‘stole the hearts of the men of Israel’ (see 2 Samuel 15:1-12). I can see how
both injustice and love for another human being can drive a man to extreme
behaviour. I don’t know which drove Absalom to such extremes but his love for
his sister touched me deeply.
The
first time that David, a man of war, turned his back on his enemies was the
time he fled Jerusalem in the face of insurrection from his son. This was a
highly uncharacteristic thing for him to do considering that Jerusalem was a
fortress to be reckoned with. Instead of facing the enemy “he appears to take
all as coming from the hand of God; therefore he humbles himself, weeps,
goes barefoot, and covers his head! He does not even hasten his departure, for
the habit of mourners is not the habit of those who are flying before the face
of their enemies. He sees the storm, and he yields to what he conceives to be
the tempest of the Almighty.” (Clarke, Bible Commentary, 2:350)
Some
believe Psalm 55 was written by David to express his feelings over Absalom’s
revolt. Note especially verses 12-14 and 20-21.
This
is the outcome of David’s tragic life: The two armies who fought for the throne
slaughtered 20,000 men (2 Samuel 18:7). Even though David’s army prevailed and
he regained the throne, the personal tragedy of his family never ended. His
charismatic son Absalom, whom David loved deeply, was murdered by the captain
of David’s army and David wept: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If
only I had died instead of you – O Absalom, my son, my son! (2 Samuel 18:9-17, 33)
“It
is almost as though after his sin with Bath-Sheba and the murder of Uriah the
light that gave David his political genius went out. His actions during this
extreme crisis were of blind loyalty to an evil son and of one foolish decision
after another.” ((Old Testament Student Manual Genesis – 2 Samuel, The Price
of Sin: Tragedy in the House of David)
But
there is more…..under advice to show Israel that his father hated him, Absalom sexually
defiled all ten of his father’s concubines (2 Samuel 16:21-23). Under the Mosaic
law (see Leviticus 18), once defiled, married women could not again enjoy the
married state. When David returned to his house, he shut up these women and fed
them ‘unto the day of their death, living in widowhood’ (2 Samuel 20:3).
Yes,
there is still more….David promised Bath-Sheba that her son Solomon would succeed
him and sit on his throne instead of Absalom’s brother Adonijah who was next in
succession. I suspect guilt had something to do with it. When Adonijah started
asserting his right to the throne, Solomon had him put to death to secure his
place on the throne of his father David (1 Kings 1:13,17;29,30; 2:15,:23-25). And
so David lost three sons and went to his death having lost his exaltation (D&C
132:38,39).
David’s repentance and godly sorrow led to his gratefulness for the resurrection of the unjust which is known as ‘the sure mercies of David’ (see Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised Messiah, p 272).
David went to his death honouring the
justice and mercy of God:
“….
my heart is glad…..for thou wilt not leave my soul in hell…..” Psalm 16:9,10)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
How
dear to the heart of the Shepherd
Is
the flock of His sheep;
With
tenderness and love
He
watches over those in His keep.
How
much do they love their Shepherd!
How
closely they stay by His side!
With
every footstep they follow,
To
forever with Him abide,
All
eternity wide.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
King David
of the Old Testament is one of my favourite heroes. His love for the God of
Israel inspired in me such admiration for him that his fall from grace has been
one of my biggest disappointments. At the same time, we are all sinful in this
most imperfect life called mortality so my heart aches for him.
His Psalms
are sublime and his testimony of the merciful heart of the Saviour shines
through like the rising sun from the east in the most popular Psalm of them
all. Psalm 23 titled The Lord Is My Shepherd is honoured by all of
Christianity throughout the world. We don’t know when this Psalm was written
exactly but the common consensus is that it was most likely written by ‘earlier
David’ because of the shepherd imagery which feels personal and natural for
someone who literally watched sheep.
When Samuel anointed David as the King of Israel, he did so with oil and “the Spirit of the Lord came upon David” (1 Samuel 16:13). David used this anointing in Psalm 23 as a symbol of protection from his enemies, mercy and comfort. There is an ancient and traditional practice that is an interesting parallel of this concept. It has to do with sheep and shepherds who anoint their heads with oil and this is why:
We are like
sheep; tormented, wounded, conflicted. Indeed we are sheep, of the greatest
Shepherd of all time who anoints us with oil of gladness, out of His great
mercy.
Today in
the Church the Melchizedek Priesthood holders consecrate olive oil before it is
used to anoint the sick or afflicted in need of healing, comfort, and protection.
The Church stipulates strongly that no other oil can be used for this purpose
(General Handbook 18.12). It has to do with the symbolic olive tree which is
the emblem of the House of Israel. The emblem includes two olive branches
flanking a temple menorah which the prophet Zechariah saw in a vision
(Zechariah 4:11-14). The olive branch is a long-standing symbol of peace,
reconciliation and hope, with roots in ancient Greek and Roman cultures. This
symbol has been carried throughout history and is still recognized today.
Have you
ever wondered why the olive tree? The research on this subject is extensive but
here is a summary: the olive tree is a symbol of longevity, prosperity,
indestructibility and generosity (relative to the fact that it produces
abundant fruit even when it is over a thousand years old. It is a living
testament to resilience, generosity and ancient wisdom. I once saw a picture of
an olive tree which was over 2,000 years old and I understood its significance
that is relative to the House of Israel.
In the Book
of Mormon, Zenos used
the olive tree as a powerful symbol of God's love and relationship with the
house of Israel (Jacob 5). The olive tree is an evergreen, meaning its' leaves
do not seasonally fade or fall. They are continually rejuvenated through
scorching heat or winter cold. It is however a sturdy tree which produces new
shoots from apparently dead roots. Its' gnarled trunk gives an impression of
travail, endurance and ancient life. Because of the unique quality of this tree
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland affirmed that "no symbol could serve more
powerfully and profoundly of God's expansive, constant, redeeming love - including
especially the love represented in the gift of his Only Begotten Son- than does
the olive tree." (Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, p
163-64)
Can
you see the relevance of olive oil as the oil of gladness, that is expressed
from timeless olive trees, and the connection to the timeless House of Israel
who we are? Next time you read this Psalm, remember who your God is:
“The
Spirit of the Lord God is upon me….to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to
give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the
garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees
of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. (Isaiah
61:3)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
I looked up to You
When in my beginning.
I saw Your strength,
Your care, Your undying love,
And I knew only You
Could make up for what
I alone could not do.
You are my Shepherd,
You are my King,
You are my Holy Grail,
You are my everything.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
The Book
of Psalms is the longest book in the Bible. It features 150 ancient Hebrew
poems, songs, and prayers. It covers deep human emotions from sorrow to joyful
worship across five distinct sections.
The Psalms
are split into five separate books:
1.
Book
One (Psalms 1-41):
Mostly poems by David focusing on personal trials, trust and lament.
2.
Book
Two (Psalms
42-72): Focuses on deliverance, longing for God, and kingship.
3.
Book
Three (Psalms
73-89): Grapples with crisis, national pain, and the Babylonian exile.
4.
Book
Four (Psalms
90-106): Shifts focus to God’s eternal reign and comfort during hard times.
5.
Book
Five (Psalms
107-150): Celebrates restoration, features the Songs of Ascent, and ends in
massive praise.
BOOK ONE: There was not a king who loved the
God of Israel more than King David. When he conquered Jerusalem he brought the
ark of the covenant into the city ‘with gladness’ and led a procession of
Israelites playing instruments, shouting, singing and dancing ‘before the Lord
with all his might’ in praise of the God he worshipped (2 Samuel 6:12-15). No
king of Israel was more free from idolatrous inclinations or practices than
David. Because of this, he became the standard of excellence that all
subsequent kings came to be measured by.
David’s
valour and his accomplishments as a king were outstanding. His reign is known in the annals of
history as ‘the golden age of Israel’. His love for the God of
Israel can leave you breathless through the psalms he wrote about Him.
King David
is traditionally celebrated as the ancient world’s premier lyricist and the
“sweet psalmist of Israel”. He started as a young shepherd in Bethlehem, using
quiet hours outdoors to play stringed instruments and craft early melodies. His
skill on the harp or lyre earned him a spot playing for King Saul to soothe the
king’s troubled moods. That was the beginning of his stint as the second king
of Israel.
Biblical
accounts note that he designed and built new musical instruments for worship
settings. As king, he organized the musical worship of Israel. He appointed
Levites to be musicians and singers in the service of the tabernacle (1
Chronicles 15:16). His talents included composition and performance of music.
He is credited with inventing musical instruments for four thousand porters who
praised the Lord with them (1 Chronicles 23:5).
I was going
to list David’s many accolades praising the God of Israel but just one tells everything
about his love for Him and his trust in His salvation:
“The Lord
is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I
walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou
art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table
before me in the presence of mine enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my
cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my
life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.” (Psalm 23)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
You feed my
soul as I meet You
At the
sacramental table.
The bread of
life, the living water,
Give me strength to endure
and tell me I am able.
With parched
lips I drink
So I will not
thirst like before,
With eagerness
I eat
Your body
given forever more.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
I love words. I love them because they are an expression of one’s soul. Among all the words in the scriptures, Psalms is the book that offers such words; words of beauty, praise, comfort, and faith…..to give peace for turbulence and a salve to the troubled heart. They also do something greater….they praise God. The most touching way Psalms were ever used for such a purpose was by Christ himself at the most soul crushing time of His life.
Imagine the Saviour travelling with His disciples to Jerusalem for the last time for the Passover and explaining to them His forthcoming death and they…..”understood none of these things” (Luke 18:31-34). He knew that road to Jerusalem well, He had travelled it many times before but that day when He travelled it, it would have been the loneliest and most excruciating of all. He was alone in what He was about to face…and nobody understood.
How gracious and kind He was to His disciples for their lack of understanding even under strain of profound emotion. The Sacrificial Lamb of God would for His last meal partake of the pascal lamb to commemorate His own death at the Last Supper. Imagine the irony of this also that escaped His disciples.
So oblivious were they of the Saviour’s anguish and advancing stress of the Atonement and so pre-occupied with selfish ambition that they fell into “muttering dispute among themselves over the matter of individual precedence, possibly as to the order in which they should take their places at table, over which triviality scribes and Pharisees as well as the Gentiles often quarrelled” (James E Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p 595) Luke 14:7-11; 22:24-30).
With sorrowful earnestness yet loving kindness, Jesus proceeded to teach them that the greatest among them is he that serves and so He washed their feet, even the feet of him who would betray him (John 13:1-20). The burden of this betrayal played on the Saviour’s heart so much that He quoted Psalms in fulfilment of this act: “He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.” (Psalm 41:9)
Yet as heavy hearted as He was at the end of the Last Supper, Jesus sang. Psalms were sung anciently at the Passover, in particular 116, 117 and 118. It goes without saying that the Saviour would have sung these particular Psalms with His disciples. Psalm 118 is a Messianic Psalm with a powerful theme of “His mercy endureth forever” which is repeated five times (vs 1, 2, 3, 4, 29). But that is not all. Upon closer reading, this Psalm testifies of the Saviour’s sacrifice. In verse 16 we read: ‘The right hand of the Lord is exalted.”
Imagine Jesus rising to His feet and singing this about himself and His ultimate sacrifice:
“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord: O lord I beseech thee, send now prosperity. Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord: we have blessed you out of the house of the Lord. God is the Lord, which hath shewed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar. Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee. O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.” (Psalms 118:24-29)
The latter part of verse 27 testifies of the Saviour’s Atonement further. The ‘horns of the altar’ in Moses’ tabernacle symbolised Jehovah’s might and power to save. When the officiating priest put sacrificial blood on the horns, it signified that forgiveness can only come through Him and His power.
Often a person accused of wrongdoing would flee to the tabernacle and hold onto the horns claiming asylum until he was tried and found guilty. The horns powerfully symbolised salvation. ‘Binding the sacrifice with cords’ can only mean the Saviour’s sacrifice was bound to the horns of the altar and did indeed symbolise that salvation comes only through Him. Likewise, the sacrificial lamb would have been bound with cords as it was being sacrificed upon the altar. Imagine the Saviour singing this Psalm about himself prior to going to His death as the sacrificial lamb of God. It makes you want to weep…..
Matthew records the end of the Last Supper as such: “And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives” (Matthew 26:30). I wonder if the words of these Psalms rang in the Saviour’s mind as He proceeded to His death.
Those of us who have in the depths of our
souls gratitude for His merciful sacrifice will shout from the rooftops this
praise of His name: “O PRAISE THE LORD; all ye nations: PRAISE HIM, all ye
people. For His merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the Lord
endureth for ever. PRAISE YE THE LORD.” (Psalm 117)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
Your
lessons, so piercing
And
so raw
Leave
me spent
As
I exhale the hurt and let it go;
Your
wisdom prevails
And
tutors me when I need it most;
You
are the healer who saves
The
broken hearted and the lost.
-
CATHRYNE ALLEN
Christ's humility in praying to the Father has always amazed me. He who proclaimed himself to be the life of the world, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end (3 Nephi 9:18), a god in his own right, knelt upon the ground with the Nephites and prayed, but not just any prayer, for the scriptures record "....The eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvellous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father" (3 Nephi 17:16).
What did He say? What words could He have possibly used to express such high regard and affection toward the Father He so loved? Verse 15 states that what He prayed about cannot be written. Perhaps because there was some revelatory content of that prayer that we could not sufficiently understand on this mortal level. I also know that some heavenly manifestations and revelations cannot be put into words because our earthly language is inadequate. I mostly suspect it was the latter and that Jesus spoke words of utmost respect and devotion, of love and adoration, of submission and gratitude that there were no adequate words to describe it.
Another significant prayer of which we have a record is the one the Saviour uttered at the Last Supper which we know as the ‘intercessory prayer’, and which could only be addressed to none but the Father whom He loved and longed to be with again (John 17):
“It has been called, and not inappropriately, the Lord’s High-Priestly Prayer. In it Jesus acknowledged the Father as the source of His power and authority, which authority extends even to the giving of eternal life to all who are worthy….With unfathomable love the Lord pleaded for those whom the Father had given Him, the apostles then present, who had been called out from the world, and who had been true to their testimony of Himself as the Son of God.” (James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p 609)
We too can speak such sublime words of worship. We can be given those words by the power of the Holy Ghost and we can speak with the tongue of angels each time we bend our knees and come before the throne of God who yearns to gather us into his bosom and bring us home (2 Nephi 32:2)
There is another form of prayer and that is a prayer of power. At the Last Supper, Jesus directed his disciples for the first time to pray to the Father in His name with assurance of success in supplication: “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it (John 14:13,14). The name of Jesus Christ was to be thenceforth the divinely established talisman by which the powers of heaven could be invoked to operate in any righteous undertaking.” (James E. Talmage, Jesus the Christ, p 603)
The prayer of power is not just any simple prayer with the mention of the Saviour’s name at the end. For it to glorify the Father, the supplication needs to be a submitted in conjunction with professed faith in Jesus Christ. Just mentioning Him at the end of the prayer is not sufficient in my mind.
A story of Alma and Amulek from the Book of
Mormon is an ideal example of this: Alma, and his convert and missionary companion, Amulek, found themselves
in captivity in the most wicked city where they sat in a dungeon naked,
suffering hunger, thirst, and physical abuse by their captors (Alma 14:18-23).
In the extremity of their captivity, Alma offered the
most heart-wrenching petition to God: “How long shall we suffer these great
afflictions, O Lord? O Lord, give us strength according to our faith which
is in Christ, even unto deliverance. ” (Alma 14:26). The cords which held
Alma and Amulek bound were broken instantly, the earth shook mightily, and the
walls of the prison were rent in twain. Alma and Amulek went out of the prison,
“and they were not hurt; for the Lord had granted unto them power, according
to their faith which was in Christ.” (v 28)
There is no greater prayer than the prayer
uttered through faith in Jesus Christ. I bear witness of this because I too was
a recipient of deliverance. Through my greatest trial in life, I prayed using
these words: “through my faith in Jesus Christ and the power of His Atonement,
I ask for the healing of my heart…….”.
It was a deliverance from pain I felt would split my chest open. The
healing came within weeks of consistent pleading through my unshaken faith in
Him who has bled that I might live.
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
You submitted to the Father’s will
To pave the path to glories unseen;
And bowed in humility Your godly knee
That all mankind like You can be.
-
CATHRYNE
ALLEN
I was speaking to a friend recently who told me he is presently teaching his children to say prayers of gratitude. For a time they are not allowed to ask for anything, only express gratitude to God for everything they receive at His hand. I was so touched by this because I believe in prayers of gratitude. I believe they bring us closer to God.
Another friend taught me years ago the true order of prayer which is praying by the power of the Holy Ghost. When we ask for his presence at the start of our prayer, we are given to ask for that which the Father is willing to give us for ‘he that asketh in the Spirit asketh according to the will of God; wherefore it is done even as he asketh’ (D&C 46:30). It’s an easy way of submitting to God’s will.
Praying by the power of the Holy Ghost also ensures that we do not ask for the wrong thing because ‘anything that is not expedient for us, shall turn unto our condemnation’ therefore we should not ‘ask for that which we ought not’ (D&C 8:10; 88:65)
I have learnt one interesting truth through prayer. There is no free lunch. That’s Satan’s philosophy. You get what you pray for but it comes with a price. I have noticed I have not prayed for one attribute I wanted without getting a difficulty or trial of some sort to enable me to develop what I’ve asked for. There is no magic wand that will change us into what we want to be overnight. If you pray like this make sure you are the person who is willing to change and to grow.
I believe there is also a higher and more supernal art of prayer. It is a prayer of worship. Whenever I come across someone’s prayer recorded in the scriptures I am touched to my core to hear such beautiful words of praise uttered by man. I am saddened that our prayers today fall short somewhat of reverence and worship they used to be anciently and now tend to be mere one-way dialogues of thanks and petitions for help. Some of us do not worship God for who He is and tend to speak to Him in all too familiar and common way as if He is our friend and so godly respect gets somewhat lost.
Consider the beautiful words of King Hezekiah’s prayer: “O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth….” (Isaiah 37:16-20) or of King Mannaseh who was the most loathed and cursed king in history of Judah, the most idolatrous king who sacrificed his own son to a heathen god, added devotion of heavenly bodies and constellations to idol worship, who shed innocent blood of prophets and all the righteous men among Hebrews every day until he had filled Jerusalem with blood from one end to the other (2 Kings 21).
When the Assyrians carried him off to Babylon he saw the error of his ways and went to the Lord with the most profound prayer that is today known as The Prayer of Manasseh. A reference to the prayer, but not the prayer itself, is made in 2 Chronicles 33:19). The prayer is deemed to be Apocryphal by Jews and Christians alike and is used by some Christian Churches today. These are the words that touched my heart the most because they were uttered from the very depth of Manasseh’s heart: “O Lord, God of our fathers…unending and immeasurable are your promised mercies….O Lord I am justly afflicted because I did evil things before you….And now behold I AM BENDING THE KNEES OF MY HEART…” Have you ever heard a prayer of repentance as touching as this???
Manasseh’s prayer is today considered one that pays tribute to the merciful heart of God. Praying to God acknowledging His providence, mercy, grace, kindness, love and all the perfect attributes He possesses will bring us nearer to His throne because of the humility which will grow in our hearts and endear us to the God of heaven. Therein we will find forgiveness, mercy and deliverance and most importantly we will bring joy to His heart and be a delight to Him forever. And may we remember to bend the knees of our hearts next time we pray.
I stand all amazed as I am lifted to Thy throne,
To see Thy soul and all that Thou art.
If I had the might to plant Thee in each heart
Of all that breathes,
In pursuit of such a quest I would walk the earth
With apparent ease.
I long to praise the magnitude of words I cannot find
That tell the glory that is Thine.
As I can do so little all my desires to meet,
I place my loyal love at Thy holy feet.
