In what ways have your prayers been answered?

I can remember the first time I came to know that God hears and answers prayers. I was very young, age five or so.

Two of my uncles had this little plane that they used for travel and for recreation. I think it sat about four people, so as you can tell, it was very small. One night, my dad was up in the plane with my uncle, flying for fun. My mom, my aunt, and of each of us children were waiting in our van at the end of the runway to pick up my dad and uncle when they were done flying.

We were out in the country, and since it was late, it was completely dark outside, so dark that you couldn't see a thing! While waiting on the end of the runway, it came to our attention that the lights lining the landing strip were not working. The plane circled overhead and couldn't land because since the lights weren't working, they couldn't see the ground. I remember sitting in the back of the van, knowing that my mom was getting very stressed. The plane kept circling and circling, for an amount of time that seemed like forever.

Knowing that the plane could very soon run out of gas, my mom and aunt said to all of us kids that we needed to say a prayer that the lights would start working. Even though I was only five years old, I remember vividly what happened next.

We all knelt down in the back of the van, and my cousin, also age 5, was asked to say the prayer. It was simple, and went something like this, "Dear Heavenly Father, please bless the lights to work so our dads can come home. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen." Upon hearing "amen," I immediately looked up out the front window to see the lights on the runway in front of us come on, one by one, until the path was illuminated for our dads to land.

I know God hears and answers prayers, even the most simple ones. I know this because He has heard and answered mine throughout my entire life.