The Value of Prayer

My husband and I had been called to fill a two year mission on the Indian reservation in Bylas Az.     We went to our new assignment the first of the year.  We lived in a house by the church. I was sustained as president of the Relief Society and I had 2 Indian sisters as my counselors. Several sisters from the stake had been coming each week to assist with the Relief Society work there and continued to come for the rest of the winter. One of the sisters gave the lesson each week on the Book of Mormon. She always read the lesson. 

I had previously taught many classes in various church assignments and always prepared my lessons so as not to read them so it was somewhat annoying     to me to have that sister read her lessons to the Indian sisters who knew so little about the Book of Mormon.  I had read the Book of Mormon many times previously.   When the winter weekly meetings were over, the summer once a month work meetings were held.

When the winter weekly meetings were over to start again, the Stake leaders asked me how much help I wanted for the coming winter meetings. I told them I did not need any. I would do it alone with my Indian counselors. The lessons were again to be on the Book of Mormon. Since I had read the Book of Mormon many times I would give the lessons.

For the first lesson I prepared well the material I would give and made all preparations for the meeting of that day. I had said my prayers but in my rush and the many preparations for the meeting I had not stopped to pray for Heavenly Father's guidance for just  that meeting or for His help in presenting the lesson.

The meeting began with the regular preliminaries.  Then I arose to give my lesson. But the words would not come. My mind seemed a total blank My lesson was a complete failure. I was the one who learned a valuable lesson that day on the value of prayer and His help and needed assistance in the work of the Lord I was called to do.

by Velda P. Hancock