The prayer life of Mormons. Zechariah 3:8; “Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.”
John 17:4; “I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.”
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God’s servant… Jesus being God’s servant was often found leaving the crowds in search of a place to spend alone time in prayer with His Father. Going over events of the day and upcoming schedules for tomorrow is a good way to stay in close communication with Him in addition to our prayers during the day that we have to ask for guidance, patience, etc.
Regrettably for Mormons, prayer time is a fixed agenda with strict guidelines they must follow. Years ago they were told never to pray to Jesus. then a few years later they were given permission to pray to Him. They’re now told not to pray for longer than two minutes at a time, they must always fold their arms during prayer, they shouldn’t use flowery expressions, they can’t use terms ‘Lord’ or ‘in Your name’ as they’re confusing, they shouldn’t use God’s name too much because ‘it’s irreverent’, and on their list goes… Not praying for longer than two minutes? My Pentecostal friends choked when I told them that one. Yikes!
With such rules how is it possible to have a relationship with the Father, or Jesus? Their rules, and regulations have strangled any hope of respite away from every member of the Church.
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1982 BYU Speech by Bruce McConkie; “I shall express the view of the Brethren, of the prophets and apostles of old, and of all those who understand the scriptures and are in tune with the Holy Spirit…We do not worship the Son, and we do not worship the Holy Ghost. I know perfectly well what the scriptures say about worshipping Christ and Jehovah, but they are speaking in an entirely different sense…There are those deluded cultists, and others who, unless they repent, are on the road to becoming cultists, who choose to believe we should worship Adam. They have found or should find their way out of the Church…
…Another peril is that those so involved often begin to pray directly to Christ because of some special friendship they feel has been developed…This is plain sectarian nonsense.
Our prayers are addressed to the Father, and to him only. They do not go through Christ, or the Blessed Virgin, or St. Genevieve or along the beads of a rosary. We are entitled to “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).”
I guess Mr. McConkie would call John the Beloved a cultist –
1 John 2:22-24King James Version (KJV)
22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.
24 Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.
I know right? I actually remember when this happened. Listened to him during a young women’s group called MIA – I was in 12th grade at the time. I didn’t dare tell anyone that I had been praying to Him for fear I’d be reprimanded. By the time this took place I had already determined I wouldn’t go back to the temple anymore and this speech gave me more serious doubts about the Church.
Michelle