Jesus Christ’s early Apostles pleaded to the Lord, “Increase our faith” (Luke 17:5). This plea from the Apostles was made in the form of a request, perhaps asking for a free gift of greater faith, but the Savior responded by teaching with a statement and a parable, treating their request as if it were the question, “How can we increase our faith?” Like these Apostles, increasing our faith in Jesus Christ is one of our greatest needs today.
Psalm 78 presents a great summary of the mercies God bestowed upon Israel, including bringing them out of Egypt, providing for them in the wilderness, and putting them in possession of the promised land. It also tells the story of an army equipped to fight but which was turned back in the day of battle because they kept not the covenant of God, refused to walk in his law, and forgot what God had done. To avoid similar problems, prayer is one of the great blessings we have to help make sure that we keep the covenants we have made with God, walk faithfully in his law, and remember what God has done for us.
Prayer is an act of faith in which we diligently seek God. As taught in Hebrews 11:6, when we come to God in prayer, we must have two things. First, faith that God actually exists. Second, faith that He will reward us because He cares and responds to our prayers. This faith will lead us to approach prayer in the way described by Nephi when he said, “I Nephi, returned from speaking with the Lord.” I find it instructive that Nephi spoke with the Lord, not to the Lord. Nephi’s description of speaking with the Lord infers a two-way conversation, not just a one-sided request for blessings that may be the pattern for many of our prayers.
“Whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall receive it”
Enos 1:15
As described, faith and prayer are inseparable. If we have faith that God exists and desires to communicate with us, we will pray. As we pray, and speak with the Lord, we naturally grow in faith as we experience God’s love, care and blessings.
My faith has grown as I have experienced the inseparable relationship of faith and prayer. I love the Lord’s promise, “Whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall receive it” (Enos 1:15).
Our son Jace was born with a skull deformity, a condition called sagittal synostosis. Unlike a normal baby born with a skull that is able to grow, Jace’s skull was completely fused making it impossible for his head to grow. The only solution was surgery when he was three-months old. The surgery required removal of a 2-inch wide piece of Jace’s skull from his forehead to the back of his head. This surgery was concerning, but of equal concern was that Jace could not eat for 12 hours before the surgery. We thought it would be impossible for a 3-month old baby to go 12 hours with no food without extreme discomfort and crying. As concerned parents, we had nowhere to turn but to God. We offered up prayers of faith, holding to the promise in Enos that whatsoever we prayed for would be granted. We prayed that the surgery would be successful and that Jace would be calm and comforted while not eating for 12 hours. After praying with faith, we then took comfort in the scripture, “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
Although Jace typically would wake twice each night to feed, this night Jace slept the entire night. He was peaceful, calm and happy the entire morning even though we didn’t feed him. We arrived at the hospital and were told that the surgeon would be two hours late. Jace continued to be peaceful, calm and happy during this extra two hours of waiting. Finally, after 14 hours without eating, without crying or any apparent discomfort, Jace received a successful surgery. As I witnessed our prayers answered, my personal faith in God grew.
I have come to understand that I need faith to pray, but as I pray and experience the rewards of prayer, my faith in God increases. This is truly a circular pattern - as I show faith by praying, my faith then increases because I experience God’s goodness because of my prayers. I testify that our faith will increase as we pray with faith.