But Let Him Ask in Faith, Nothing Wavering...

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him..

But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering..."

I guess it's safe to say that this scripture is familiar to every Latter-day saint (Mormon). It is the passage that encouraged the boy Joseph Smith to go to the woods and ask Heavenly Father about the questions he had in his mind. 

I reckon that because of how often it is repeated in classes, in meetings, in conferences, this scripture is kinda taken for granted. However, while I was watching 'The Restoration' the other day, 3 thoughts struck my mind

1.) Joseph Smith lacked wisdom

2.) He recognized this and he asked answers directly from God

3.) He was asking in pure unwavering faith. He really believed he will be heard by our Father in Heaven. This faith of his resulted to the First Vision. Answers were given to him because he acted in unwavering faith.

As someone who is reviewing for the CPA board exams, I won't deny that there have been countless times that fear gnawed me. I don't know what will happen in the future. I have no inkling what lies before me. There are still many accounting concepts that I struggle to understand that sometimes make me say "Waaah, what's wrong with your brain?" The ever present uncertainty and the difficulty of understanding the lessons most often cause my faith to waver..... and wavering faith is not good. 

However, when I heard the words of James 1:5-6 again, it seems as though a heavy load was lifted up from my heart. It gave me a moment of "Eureka!" I came to realize that I am not a hopeless case! Heavenly Father is more than willing to bless me with the wisdom that I need to comprehend the important accounting concepts! He is willing to give that blessing because I am His daughter and He wants me to be successful!

But in order for me to get this, I need to ask in pure unwavering faith. When Joseph Smith went to the sacred grove to pray to our Heavenly Father, I don't think that he has any idea that the Father and the Son would appear to him. However, he had this great faith that God gives to them that ask with complete trust. Even though he was attacked by such a dark feeling from the adversary, he persevered and stayed faithful that God will truly hear him. And heard Him, the Lord did. :)

I can compare this to the times that I feel such strong discouragements from the adversary. We all have those moments when we feel that we are total failures, a big disappointment, and our future blurry. Ahh! Those feelings! They are despicable. And we should not allow those feelings to consume us! Satan tried with all his might to stop Joseph Smith from praying because he knew young Joseph was ordained for a great and marvelous work! I get goosebumps with that! The more we feel discouraged, the greater potential we have and the adversary can see that! How amazing is that realization?!

I came to a conclusion that no matter how hard it is for us right now, no matter how disheartening our situation is, if we have pure unwavering faith, we can experience deliverance. We may not know what the future holds for us but the Lord said "For I know the plans that I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future..." I feel so overwhelmed every time I remember that. The Lord wants us to be successful. Again, He WANTS us to be successful because He has already planned that for us. Meaning, it's bound to happen. :). What we need to do is to have pure unwavering faith, our best efforts and actions, and perseverance despite all the buffetings of the adversary. 

No need to fear the future anymore! We just need to ask in faith, nothing wavering! :)