I have been thinking about God and prayer and how much He answers prayer. Any prayer. All prayers. Every prayer. He answers.
But so many times I am so unsure. And it seems that prayers have gone unanswered. Not only my prayers, but prayers of others, prayers for myself, prayers for others, or just prayers that I've prayed because it's the thing that Christians are supposed to do. Not only because it's part of being a Christian, but because you are a Christian, because you have heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ and accepted it, by faith, as true, because you have in some intimate way, experienced the power and knowledge of God in a deep and profound way, so much so, that there is definitely no other explanation - but the ultimate presence of Almighty God (of the bible), that you pray. That you lift your voice and you pray and ask God to remedy the situation or circumstance that is before you.
And nothing.
What I mean by nothing - is nothing.
And all Christians experience this. All Christians, the world over, experience the silence that has followed deep earnest prayer. But you don't think about that! Not while 'YOU' are the one sitting in terrible circumstances, or sitting there waiting for God's salvation to come to your loved ones, or sitting there waiting for God to avenge your enemies or the enemies of your loved ones. And the silence is almost threatening. And always, ALWAYS - EVERY TIME - you forget any time, any other time, that God has answered your prayer.
And the most amazing thing is - that during those times of silence - of 'unanswered' prayer - I never once think it's because God isn't real. If any doubt enters my mind - it is always - the doubt that God loves me. The doubt that my circumstances are of no concern to an Almighty God. The doubt that I, have in some way, sinned against Holy God and that He no longer cares for me. The doubt that I am even 'saved' - acceptable - to Holy God. And I attempt to 'ingratiate' myself back into God's good books.
Isn't that amazing. It's amazing because what I totally forget to remember - is that my acceptance by God has absolutely nothing to do with me whatsoever, or for that matter, any good I have ever done or will ever do. My acceptance by Almighty God is through my faith, my acceptance, that Jesus Christ died on the Cross to atone for my sins and that when God accepts me, He accepts me through Jesus Christ. And that's it!
So I have unanswered prayer in front of me and I have God who accepts me because of Jesus Christ. So - what's going wrong?
And that's when it dawns on me.
Like most things in this life - I have come to believe that you only get what you deserve. And that for everything - there is a formula - a one, two, three step formula to get answered prayer. And that just isn't true!
God does not work like that. Not that I claim to know exactly how He does work - I totally do know that He does not work like that. He is God. He is I Am. The Pharisees work like that. But God does not.
So, unanswered prayer? What does that mean? Well, I've been told a few things - One, He answers prayer and says Yes. Two, He answers prayer and says No. Three, He answers prayer in silence and says Wait. Or Four, He answers prayer but you can't accept His answer.
And that all sounds reasonable.
But, what I've come to see in the bible is this. God answers all prayer. Every prayer. Every call to God is answered. And the thing I see in the bible - what I fail to see in front of me - is that His answer to prayer is Him. He is the answer.
He is the answer to all our prayers.
I've just been caught up in the question!
And nothing.
What I mean by nothing - is nothing.
And all Christians experience this. All Christians, the world over, experience the silence that has followed deep earnest prayer. But you don't think about that! Not while 'YOU' are the one sitting in terrible circumstances, or sitting there waiting for God's salvation to come to your loved ones, or sitting there waiting for God to avenge your enemies or the enemies of your loved ones. And the silence is almost threatening. And always, ALWAYS - EVERY TIME - you forget any time, any other time, that God has answered your prayer.
And the most amazing thing is - that during those times of silence - of 'unanswered' prayer - I never once think it's because God isn't real. If any doubt enters my mind - it is always - the doubt that God loves me. The doubt that my circumstances are of no concern to an Almighty God. The doubt that I, have in some way, sinned against Holy God and that He no longer cares for me. The doubt that I am even 'saved' - acceptable - to Holy God. And I attempt to 'ingratiate' myself back into God's good books.
Isn't that amazing. It's amazing because what I totally forget to remember - is that my acceptance by God has absolutely nothing to do with me whatsoever, or for that matter, any good I have ever done or will ever do. My acceptance by Almighty God is through my faith, my acceptance, that Jesus Christ died on the Cross to atone for my sins and that when God accepts me, He accepts me through Jesus Christ. And that's it!
So I have unanswered prayer in front of me and I have God who accepts me because of Jesus Christ. So - what's going wrong?
And that's when it dawns on me.
Like most things in this life - I have come to believe that you only get what you deserve. And that for everything - there is a formula - a one, two, three step formula to get answered prayer. And that just isn't true!
God does not work like that. Not that I claim to know exactly how He does work - I totally do know that He does not work like that. He is God. He is I Am. The Pharisees work like that. But God does not.
So, unanswered prayer? What does that mean? Well, I've been told a few things - One, He answers prayer and says Yes. Two, He answers prayer and says No. Three, He answers prayer in silence and says Wait. Or Four, He answers prayer but you can't accept His answer.
And that all sounds reasonable.
But, what I've come to see in the bible is this. God answers all prayer. Every prayer. Every call to God is answered. And the thing I see in the bible - what I fail to see in front of me - is that His answer to prayer is Him. He is the answer.
He is the answer to all our prayers.
I've just been caught up in the question!
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