One day my 12-year-old son was walking through the house looking for something. Opening and closing cabinets, picking up sofa cushions. Going in and out of the garage.
“What are you looking for?” I asked.
“My iPod,” he said.
“Did you pray about it?”
“Yeah, right,” he grumped and moved into the other room.
A while later he returned and repeated the seeking maneuvers: cushions up and down, rug lifted and replaced, drawers opened and shut.
“Still haven’t found it? Why don’t you pray about it?”
“No and no. Heavenly Father does not care if I find my iPod.”
I answered: “You’re right. Heavenly Father does not care if you find your iPod. But He does very much care about whether or not you’re happy. And He also appreciates chances to show you that He answers prayers.”
“Well, I’m not going to.”
“Okay, it’s your choice.”
Over the next few hours the door slamming and drawer shutting continued. The school backpack was emptied and repacked. The trash can was emptied and re-filled. The coat closet was turned inside out and reloaded. The iPod was not to be found. The seeker’s grumpiness increased.
“Do me a favor,” I asked. “Please, just go pray about it. You have already spent hours looking. Why not spend five minutes asking for help?”
“Fine,” he agreed at last and trudged up the stairs to his room. Six minutes later, he returned, iPod in hand.
“You found it!” I exclaimed. “Did you even have a chance to say your prayer?”
He sat down sheepishly. “I knelt down at my bed and bowed my head and from there I could see it jammed behind the bed. That is the only place I could have seen it.”
“So you didn’t pray after all?” I asked.
“Yes,” he answered, “I did. I wanted to tell Him thank you for His help.”
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Ask and it shall be given unto you; Seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be
opened.
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