Elder Ronald A. Rasband on finding peace through prayer

Elder Ronald A. Rasband (b. February 6, 1951) served as a Seventy beginning in 2000.  He was the senior president of the Seventy when he was called to the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in October 2015.

"You too will have moments when the adversary will come after you. He will make things hard or sometimes worse, more alluring, than living the commandments of God. Do not be drawn off or discouraged. Do not blame the Lord for He has said, '...I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted.' (1 Nephi 21:11.)

"Trust Him. Trust Him to help you with the decision about an eternal companion, a family, a job and a home. Pray for guidance, make a decision, and then take it to the Lord for His confirming peace.

"'...when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God....' (Alma 37:37)

"If you find yourself in mists of darkness, get down on your knees. Brigham Young used to teach about prayer, 'Knees get down, I say; and down bend the knees.' (JD 7:164) It's that simple....

"The Lord has a plan for each one of us and He will unfold that plan as we turn to Him in prayer, seek His guidance, act upon His promptings and press on. This, I know, brothers and sisters."

- Ronald A. Rasband, "To the Summit," BYU-Idaho Commencement Address, April 8, 2016
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Elder Rasband acknowledges some of the challenges of life: when things are challenging and hard, or when it seems rewarding to turn away from God. Those are the times when we most need God; and we must learn to turn to him regardless of the situation and our inclinations:

The key is to learn to trust God. As we have experiences in our lives with Him, we will become familiar with how He can bless and sustain us through our challenges or temptations. If we get used to praying when prayer is more natural or easy, then we will be more likely to pray when it's more difficult or unnatural. Each experience builds our faith and confidence in Him, to the point like Brigham Young, we know to discipline ourselves and choose to turn to Him .even when the tendency is to turn away.

(Compilation and commentary by David Kenison, Orem, Utah, 2018)