For God's Ears

Christ taught in the Sermon on the Mount about prayer to help His disciples distinguish between legitimate prayer and false prayer.

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
--Matthew 6:5-6

Public prayer in which we all participate is acceptable, but prayer for show is not. Our prayers are for God's ears, not for the ears of others. I am nevertheless guilty of this very practice. When asked to offer a prayer in Sacrament meeting, I get nervous. I become overly concerned with how those in the meeting will perceive my prayer. I consider what words would be most beneficial for the congregation to hear from me. How foolish! If my prayer were sincere, I would not pray to the people, I would pray to God on their behalf. I am the spokesman, not the speaker. I ask forgiveness of those who have heard my public prayers and have praised my fine words but were robbed of the presence of the Spirit because of my pride.

Properly framed, our prayers are not to impress others. They lift us to God and invite him to work on our hearts. The reward we seek is not the praise of men but the peace of God. He rewards us openly as a witness of His goodness, not of our piety or worthiness.

Closer

In the greatest sermon ever taught, Jesus included this injunction to His disciples: 

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
--Matthew 5:44

Jesus, the perfect Man, exemplified this commandment when He prayed for forgiveness for His crucifiers. "And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left. Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:33-34). Jesus gave no commandment to His followers that He Himself was not willing and able to keep.

Praying for others is not mysterious. Whether we pray for loved ones, strangers, or even enemies, such prayers sanctify us. They draw us closer to God and to those for whom we pray. Our prayers for our enemies do not change God's heart or even our enemies' hearts, but they change our hearts. God can show us especially our enemies through His eyes and free us from fear and acrimony. The more we learn to pray for others in faith and love, the closer we become to the Savior.

In My Distress

Chapter 18 of the book of Psalms is a magnificent testimony of God's strength. King David, having suffered many trials and afflictions in his younger years, speaks with great power in beautiful language of his love for the Lord:

I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.
-Psalm 18:1-3

I love these words: strength, rock, fortress, deliverer, my buckler, the horn of my salvation, my high tower. And then, what does he say? I will call upon the Lord, and so I shall be saved. God has unfathomable power, but we have to call upon Him. He won't save me unless I ask.

Then David writes:

In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.
-Psalm 18:6

In my distress, I too have called upon the Lord, and He has heard me. When I have been crushed by dark despair, He has lifted me and lightened my way. When I could see no way out of my trials, He walked with me. When I have felt alone, He has come to my side. But only when I asked.

In his Psalm David describes all the ways God has intervened for him with great displays of heavenly power, and then he concludes:

With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright; With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure. . . For thou wilt save the afflicted people. . . For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.
-Psalm 18:25-28

God will be merciful to me and to all those who call upon Him. We just need to ask. A simple, sincere prayer. All that power is waiting to protect us and save us. Smoke, fire, hot coals like hail, hurricanes, thunder, brilliant light - it is all available, God's full power and glory - when we ask.

David ends his Psalm with these words of praise and gratitude:

Therefore will I give thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto thy name. Great deliverance giveth he to his king; and sheweth mercy to his anointed, to David, and to his seed for evermore.
-Psalm 18:49-50

God has shown mercy to me, David, though I am not a king. May He show great mercy to my children and all that come after me.