Biblical Leadership: Why Your Prayer Is Not AnsweredSample

Don’t Give Up!

Following are six reasons why God might not answer your prayer, each taken from the Bible, God’s guide for your leadership and life:

1. You don’t ask 
2. You asked, but with the wrong motives
3. You don’t believe
4. You are not obedient to God’s law for life
5. You are dishonoring your family
6. You ignore the poor and needy

Keeping a perfect scorecard on these six items is not possible. No matter how hard you try, you will fall short. Praise God for the gift of forgiveness in Jesus Christ! With this, a fresh start is possible each and every day, provided however, that you’re spending time with God to confess and repent. For help with that, check the reading plan, “How to Pray; What to Pray For.”

As you pray and remember these six reasons for unanswered prayer, you will most certainly still find times where God is silent. Where your prayers still seem like they are not being answered. 

At times like those, the Bible offers additional guidance. Jesus encouraged persistence in prayer. Check the introduction to his parable of the persistent widow:

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.  – Luke 18:1

The Apostle Paul also demonstrated persistence, but check what he did when he received an answer quite different to what he was asking for:

Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  – 2 Corinthians 12:8-9

When Paul didn’t receive the answer that he was praying for, he didn’t just keep praying for it; he acknowledged God’s response and adjusted his leadership plans to match. 

Sometimes though, God isn’t giving you any response, leaving you in a waiting state, unsure of how to proceed. At times like that, take encouragement from the “career paths” of Moses, David, or Joseph in the Old Testament. None of those leaders was abandoned by God, even after 20 years. Instead, it was just not yet their time. So they waited and then waited some more. 

Regardless of your situation, waiting for God’s response is a significant challenge. As you wait, fall back on this verse and pray for wisdom again and again:

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  – James 1:5

Then, as you persist in prayer, be sure to keep the faith, keep asking for wisdom, and follow the flexibility demonstrated by Paul to incorporate however God may answer into your leadership plan! 

May God guide you and bless you and your leadership!

Reflection and application

1. We found the Bible gives six reasons why God might not answer your prayers. Which of these need special attention from you? What might happen then?
2. Persistence, patience, and wisdom. Which is your weak suit? How can you strengthen that?
3. Paul gives an example of flexibility to accept God’s will even as that answer was far from what he wanted and asked for. Have you ever rejected an answer from God and kept on asking, or gone your own way? How can you adopt Paul’s ability to be flexible into your leadership?