Prayer - Draw Us Closer to God

Elder Siu Hong Pon

Of the Seventy

“Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name” (3 Nephi 18:19). This is the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. Prayer is one of the greatest blessings we have while we are here on earth. Through prayer we can communicate with Heavenly Father and seek His guidance every day. Prayer is a sincere, heartfelt talk with our Heavenly Father.

I would like to share with you two experiences on prayer that had strengthened my faith and testimony in my life.

By Tan Wen Jie

A year after being commissioned an Inspector in the Singapore Police Force, I have finally been given the one commission that I’ve been working 20 years of my life to achieve. It is the commission to serve as the Lord’s missionary in the England London Mission.

Hindsight is always 20/20 and looking back, I can see how the small things along the way have prepared me, and moulded me to become the person I am today. Take early morning seminary for example. After waking up at 5:30 a.m. for five years of classes where we ploughed through Isaiah, pushed through 63 chapters of Alma, memorised the First Vision and stretched our mental faculties to the limit -- the push-ups and pull-ups that we were made to do during Officer School seemed like a piece of cake; a mind-over-matter battle that was easily won. Not that Seminary was excessively hard, or that it wasn't fun! It just further prepared me for life in a way that I had never expected.

By Estelle Ith

I was never one of those people who felt that serving a mission was a priority, and who would sacrifice all to see it through. In fact, I was right at the other end of the spectrum. Since my patriarchal blessing left the mission as an open-ended choice, I had long decided on not serving a full-time mission. Hence, to find myself preparing to serve a mission in England, Leeds, does surprise me to a large extent.

On the 6th of December, a group composed chiefly of Relief Society sisters from the Ang Mo Kio ward visited the residents at the Asian Women’s Welfare Association (AWWA) Community Home for the Senior Citizens in Ang Mo Kio. Bringing tidings of joy, and basketfuls of homemade cakes and cookies, it was little wonder that the AWWA residents welcomed them eagerly and warmly! There was also much anticipation in the air, as the residents had been informed that Santa Claus was coming as well.

On 22 December 2012, children from the Jamiyah Children’s Home joined with members of the Toa Payoh ward in brightening up the classrooms and corridors of the Home with fresh coats of paint.

“...if you had been the only person my testimony had any influence whatsoever on, this whole entire trip, journey, mission would have been so worth it. This is the pricelessness of even one soul for Jesus.”

In the early morning drive back from the airport, I remember winding through the nostalgic streets of Singapore -- towering buildings, orderly wayside trees, engulfing city skyline, starless sky. Looking out the car window, it was hard to imagine that I had been born here, that for all of my life this was home. In over 18 months, home had somehow become a blessed island paradise in Hawaii.

On 1 June 2011, I entered the Provo MTC to begin a mission to the Lord. From the beginning, I was thrust into heaven on earth, living a life so far above the world I was familiar to. MTC was a spiritual university, teaching me things of true eternal worth and shaping me daily into a better and more pleasing daughter of Father in Heaven. I was so happy in its hallowed halls, passing four glorious weeks there. From then on, it was out to the white and glistening fields of the Hawaii Honolulu Mission.

By Joshua Lim

The objectives of both Seminary and Institute is to help members “understand and rely on the teachings and Atonement of Jesus Christ, qualify for the blessings of the temple, and prepare themselves, their families, and others for eternal life with their Father in Heaven.”

It never crossed my mind as to how important these programs were to be in influencing my missionary experience. I believe if not for these 2 programs, I would not have been sufficiently prepared for my service as a missionary. Let me list a few things that stand out to me.

By Samantha Song

Even though I was called to serve in Malaysia, a place which we Singaporeans are all too familiar with, I still felt as though I was miles away from home. And for this, I give much credit to the ten, terrific, true-blue American companions I had (one of them even taught me how to sing the Utah and Nevada state songs). Deciding to go and serve a full-time mission was the best thing I have done in my 23 years of life.  I gained a wealth of spiritual experiences that have helped me to see past the present and truly understand what it means to endure to the end. I want to share ten things I positively enjoyed on my mission (not in any order):

Handel's masterpiece, 'Messiah' is a Christmas favourite and has been performed in almost every country for almost 300 years.  During this year’s Christmas Festive season, the Stake decided to stage Handel’s Messiah for the community with a Sing-Along concert. The concert was held on 7 and 8 December at the Compassvale Link Chapel and Bukit Timah Stake Center respectively.

by Rogelio Cortez

The missionary handbook reads, “When you have questions or concerns, your first source of help is your Father in Heaven." What a wonderful truth. Inviting investigators and less-actives to pray, and to have faith and trust in God that He will answer their cries, is one of the best opportunities I had in the mission. This practice helps individuals know the truth for themselves.

One experience I had in my first area was when we were teaching a 71-year-old-woman who had been widowed for several years. The missionaries had been teaching her for three months when I got there. My trainer decided to drop her as she wasn't progressing at all. However, I had been taught in the MTC that we are to never give up on people as Heavenly Father will never give up on us!