He can, but will He?

[Anonymous]

This question — “He can, but will He?” pervades my prayers and thoughts. And has done for years and years.

I don’t seem to have any trouble believing that God has the power to do whatever HE pleases. But WILL HE? That is the question that I often answer without much faith sometimes. What are the principles that govern whether God WILL put his matchless power to work on our behalf, to intervene, to make things happen around us that otherwise would not have happened had we not asked.

Is this distinction important? God can, but WILL he?

[Anonymous]

DW and I have had this discussion many times. It seems to be an issue of perception. Rather than the old adage “seeing is believing,” it is a case of “believing is seeing.”

It can become a self fulfilling prophecy. This really is not necessarily a bad thing. The religious person that sees blessings everywhere, feels personally connected to divinity, and empowered to do hard things believing that they will have help from above – that person is usually not worse off than the average for their perceptions that might not match up with what can be proven. Indeed, I have observed religious individuals living in difficult circumstances find great meaning in their struggles when they might otherwise have despaired.

In summary, No, I do not believe “He” will. However, we can do a great many things if we believe that we can.

[Anonymous]

I’ve been trying to figure this out my whole life. The only answer I can come up with is:

Not will He. But, How will He? & will I understand it when (& if) the answer comes?

There is also value in the principle:

Quote:

figure it out yourself

& hope that God

will confirm that it is the right answer. I’ve mentioned in other posts that at the

start of my FC, I needed an answer to my pray: why is this happening? & what am I

suppose to do now? I went through a whole list of items where I thought I was entitled

to an answer. TR holder, full tithe payer, WofW, Yes to every calling, etc

We were inactive for many years. One of the first F&T meetings we went to coming back, a member

stood to bear her testimony & said how God answered her prayer that morning by helping her

to find her car keys. God does have a sense of humor.

[Anonymous]

I think this is one of the biggest thing’s I’ve had problems with personally. For others, the idea of asking for help with something in prayer and leaving it in God’s hands can be a comfort. But for me, it opens the doors to a massive amount of anxiety and self doubt. Hoping that I receive what I ask for is unsettling to me because you never really “know” if you’ll receive the divine help you need/want. If I don’t see the blessing that I’m hoping for, then my first reaction is to begin questioning myself: “I know He can, but if He isn’t, then why isn’t He? If it is me, then what is it? Am I doing something wrong? Did I ask in the right way, or for the right thing?” All of these questions and more unsettle me and end up turning it into an exercise of self-degradation. Then from there, it usually leads to more existential questioning. :crazy:

[Anonymous]

That struggle is certainly real Pazamaman.

When our third child was born stillborn one of my first reactions was wondering if I had failed to live up to my covenants and therefore failed to “qualify for” divine protection.

Another traditional answer to trials is that they are intended to be a learning/teaching opportunity. DW and I also had trouble with this logic because it implied that if we weren’t so dense and hard to teach then God could have gotten his point across using less extreme measures. Sort of like God saying, “You wouldn’t listen to the still small voice or other methods of instruction, so I guess the only way to get through to you is to take your child.”

I feel that a general outlook of seeing trials as learning opportunities can be good but it also has limitations.

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