Thoughts for Life: #12 Unanswered

~ Anne Cetas- One of my biggest struggles is unanswered prayer. Maybe you can relate. You ask God tor rescue a friend from addiction, to grant salvation to a loved one, to heal a sick child, to mend a relationship.

All these things you think must be God's will. For years you pray. But you hear nothing back from Him and you see no results. (Google image, 7 Ways to pray for someone) by Aaron Brown

You remind the Lord that He's powerful. that your request is a good thing. You plead. You wait. Your doubt — Maybe He has forgotten me, or maybe I'm not a priority to Him. You quit asking — for days or months.

You feel guilty about doubting. You remember that God wants you to take your needs to Him, and you tell Him your requests again.

We may sometimes feel we're like the persistent widow in Jesus' parable recorded in Luke 18. She keeps coming to the judge, badgering him and trying to wear him down so he'll give in.

But we know that God is kinder and more powerful than the judge in the parable. We trust Him, for He is good and wise and sovereign. We remember that Jesus said we "should always pray and never give up" (v. 1).

So we ask, "Summon your might, O God. Display your power, O God, as you have in the past" (Psalm 68:28). And then we trust Him . . . and wait. [Anne Cetas]

Let's pray-

Father, we have had unanswered prayers over the years too, so we can relate to Anne's feelings today. When we've prayed for friends and loved ones, and there seems to have been no answer, help us understand that You do hear, and that You are working on each request.

Our knowing You are powerful, and that we are requesting good things, we continue to plead for another's benefit. Though we may, at times, doubt that we're a priority to You, may we continue to ask for Your help, remembering that Your Word tells us to take our needs to you, that You actually delight in answering them.

We'll continue to ask that You summon Your might and display Your power as You have in the past. We will trust You and wait, if we must, for Your timing and best answers for each request.

We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Today's Bible verses-

Isaiah 40:1 “Comfort, comfort My people, says your God.”

Isaiah 51:12 “I, I Myself, am He who comforts you.”

Joshua 1:5 “I will be with you. I will not desert you nor abandon you.”

John 6:38 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent me.”

Quote for today-

~ Dr. Myles Munroe- Whenever God demands something of you, don't ask whether you can do it. When you pick up the Bible and read that you can do anything if you believe, don't argue that you can't. God believes—in fact He knows—that whatever you believe hard enough, strong enough, and committed enough can come out of you because He put it in you." [p. 232 in [DISCOVER THE HIDDEN YOU, by Dr. Myles Munroe]

Words of wisdom-

~ Responsibilities are given to us in the rearing of children, whether ours or our grandchildren. Are we taking it seriously? As we pass along what has been given to us, are we remembering why we're given them? Younger ones need to know about what's important to God and to us. May we understand that what we share can help them believe in God's Word too.

Today's Popular post-

Consider, For a Moment . . .

Jean Oathout- "Conviction of sin is one of the most uncommon things that ever happens to a person. It is the beginning of an understanding of God."