Nevertheless The Lord Did Hear Their Cries

Mosiah 21:15

"And now the Lord was slow to hear their cry because of their iniquities; nevertheless the Lord did hear their cries, and began to soften the hearts of the Lamanites that they began to ease their burdens; yet the Lord did not see fit to deliver them out of bondage"


Here the people of Limhi are suffering by the hand of the Lamanites and they are begging to Lord to remove their burden. It may sound harsh that the Lord does not answer this plea right away but these people had been warned. They were told they would suffer if they did not repent. But why let them suffer? Because repentance is not cheap or easy.
"The Lord who is patient and long-suffering even with evil may be equally slow to redeem the transgressor. The seeds of iniquity are not easily uprooted; time and suffering are a part of the healing process. The blessings of heaven are not cheaply obtained. One hardly merits the company of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the exalted of all ages by the mere profession of faith or the lamentation for sin. A merely verbal repentance is hardly good training for the discipline necessary in keeping the commandments"


D&C 101:7-8 - 7
7. They were slow to hearken unto the voice of the Lord their God; therefore, the Lord their God is slow to hearken unto their prayers, to answer them in the day of their trouble.
8. In the day of their peace they esteemed lightly my counsel; but, in the day of their trouble, of necessity they feel after me.

I think we are all guilty of this sometime. We want to do what we want to do when we want to do it. We don't want someone to cramp our style or infringe upon our lifestyle. But when the tables turn and we need help or comfort then we fall upon our knees and beg the Lord for his help. But how fair is that. If you had a friend who never listened, never really talked to you and then one day came to your home and was begging you to sacrifice in order to do them a favor...how willing would you be to help the person who couldn't care less what you did the other 365 days of the year. That being said, I love the highlighted part of the scripture...'Nevertheless the Lord did hear their cries'. He does hear each one of us. But he also knows what is best for each of us and like any good parent, sometimes he has to allow us to cry in order for us to learn valuable lessons that will make us better in the end. We cannot have everything we want the instant we want it if we are going to be worthwhile individuals. He loves us, and because he loves us, our prayers sometimes remain unanswered.