Sweet Hour of Prayer
LDS Hymn #142 (Hymn text link on LDS Church Music website)
"In seasons of distress and grief, my soul has often found relief ..."
This was the very first hymn I ever arranged. I arranged it within the year following the deaths of my sister and father of cancer. During this difficult time in my life, I found that playing the piano brought great comfort to me. Although I have played the piano since I was young, I think this is my first recollection of the piano becoming a tool with which I could express my innermost feelings. This quote, now says it all for me …
“Music lets the heart express what words cannot”.
This arrangement reflects my personal testimony of the power of prayer. The times when I feel so very alone, or discouraged, or in despair … and how gradually through prayer a sweet feeling of peace and joy enters my heart.
In Book of Mormon scripture, Jacob, some time after his older brother Nephi’s death, offered this counsel to the people who were “pure in heart”. “Look unto God with firmness of mind, and pray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions." (Jacob 1:3)
Through personal experience, I know Jacob’s words to be true. For when I have turned to God in prayer, he indeed has consoled me!