Prayer BasicsSample

Why does God not always answer our prayers? Why do we sometimes come to a place where we feel that prayer doesn’t work? These questions do not have any simple answers and the reason we often are asking them is often borne out of serious pain and grief. 

The Bible is very realistic and honest about unanswered prayers. Half of the Psalms are about bitter lamentations and even the word Israel means to struggle. Jesus warns us that this world will be filled with troubles (John 16:33), but we take solace in the fact that, for those in Christ, no trouble or disappointment can take away our hope. Psalm 30:5 states that there is night time and weeping, but our joy will come with the morning. So perhaps we have been asking the wrong question. In Daniel 3, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego make an amazing statement of faith and faithfulness, but God doesn’t respond to their faith by airlifting them out of the situation. God’s response is to be present with them in the middle of the mess. So perhaps we should stop asking “why Lord?” and rather start looking to see God in the middle of our circumstances. Our suffering might be the product of a broken world, a spiritual enemy bent on our destruction or even God, in His wisdom, saying no. But we know we can trust God’s love. In Hebrews 13:5 God promises never to leave us alone and Psalm 23:4 confirms this.

Our whole faith is incarnated in the fact that at the cross our God came and suffered with us. So much empathy and wisdom is captured in the cross. If we think of what happened in Mark 14:32-36 in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus shows us how He handles the suffering He knew was coming:

1. Jesus calls God ‘Abba Father’.  He confirms that God loves Him as a father; He chooses not to focus on the pain He would have to endure, but rather chooses to focus on the approval and love of His Father.

2. Jesus affirms that all power belongs to God.

3. He is brutally honest and vulnerable before His friends, the disciples, waiting nearby.

4. He surrenders to the will of God. Showing His absolute trust in the fact that God can and will do what is right.

Having an answer in our heads is a lot less important than having His presence in our hearts, knowing that He works all things together for the good of those who love Him (Rom 8:28).

Dig in:

Follow the example of Jesus today. Break the cycle of unanswered prayers and ask God to make you aware of His loving presence.