abide.

I know that God answers our prayers. But what if I am praying and tell my Heavenly Father that I really want to get a pony? What if I ask very sincerely and promise Him that I will feed the pony and take the pony on walks?

In John 14:13-14 (see also John 15:16; 16:23-24) it says "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 any thing in my name, I will do it."

In that scripture Jesus Christ gives us a condition to answering our prayers. We must ask in His name and then He will do it.

In a previous blog post I discovered what it means to take upon us the name of Christ, but what does it mean to pray in the name of Christ?

I was taught by my parents and church leaders to always close my prayers "in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

So when I pray for a pony, is this good enough?

Dear Heavenly Father,
I would really like to have a pony. I promise that I will feed him every day and take him on walks. I know that thou always hears and answers my prayers and I know that thou can make it possible for me to have a pony.
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Will God grant my desire?

As I have studied, pondered, and prayed in my life, I have come to know that there is more to it than just saying Jesus Christ's name at the end of your prayer.

The bible dictionary entry for prayer says "Christians are taught to pray in Christ's name. We pray in Christ's name when our mind is the mind of Christ, and our wishes the wishes of Christ--when His words abide in us. We then ask for things it is possible for God to grant. Many prayers remain unanswered because they are not in Christ's name at all; they in no way represent His mind but spring out of the selfishness of man's heart."

The Bible says, "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." (John 15:7)

The word "abide" in the Merriam-Webster dictionary means to "dwell, remain, last".

Elder Jeffery R. Holland taught about the word abide. He said, "I gained even more appreciation for this admonition from the Lord when I was introduced to the translation of this passage in another language, in Spanish that familiar phrase is rendered "permaneced en mi." Like the English verb "abide," permanecer means "to remain, to stay," but even gringos like me can hear the root cognate there of "permanence." The sense of this then is "stay--but stay forever." ("Abide in Me")

So in order for our prayers to be in Christ's name, His words must dwell in us forever. Like the bible dictionary says, we must be asking God for things that it is possible for Him to grant. We must become like Jesus Christ and know what God's will is for us. Then we will desire the same things that the Savior desires. Then when we ask for those things, our prayers will be in Jesus Christ's name.

According to John and the bible dictionary, my prayer for a pony is probably not in the name of Christ. Right now, as a missionary it is completely illogical for me to have a pony. I don't need a pony in order to do missionary work. In fact, a pony will take me away from what is important most as a missionary. I have been called by God to serve Him and represent Jesus Christ. Even if I promise that I will take care of the pony, God is not going to grant that desire if it is not His will.

I know that becoming like Jesus Christ and causing His words to dwell in us forever and our prayers will be His mind and His will. And they will be answered. James E. Faust said, "What a glorious day it will be for each of us when we pray with confidence that 'if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us.'(1 John 5:14)"(The Lifeline of Prayer)