PHBehind Every Answered and Unanswered Prayer Is a Loving God
Every person who prays and makes a request to God definitely wants his prayers to be answered and his request to be granted at the soonest time possible. But that does not happen all the time. While it is true that some prayers are readily granted, there are also prayers that are not granted at all, and sometimes, if granted, it takes a while before the person receives it. But what could be the reasons behind these?
First of all, you have to understand that there is always a valid reason why God does not instantly grant the prayers and requests of a person. God’s response to prayers sometimes depends on the person making it – if he is upright, or if he is wicked. One thing is for sure, God does not listen to the prayers of a wicked man.
Consider what PROVERBS 15:8 (KJV) says,
The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
God is delighted with the prayers of the upright, and we can be assured that He listens to his prayers.
1 JOHN 5:14 (KJV) says,
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
God listens to the prayers of the upright especially so if what he asks for is something that is in accordance to His will.
On the other hand, what does the Bible say if the one making the request, or if the one praying, is wicked or an evildoer?
1 PETER 3:10-12 (KJV) says,
10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
God admonishes people to be upright, to do righteousness, to do good deeds, and to speak without guile. Even a person’s tongue should be disciplined because the tongue that we use in speaking is the very tongue that we use in praying.
If the person praying is somebody who deliberately does evil things and intentionally defies the word of God, even if he keeps on praying, God will never listen to him. God is not deaf but He has a way of evading the prayers of the wicked; He has a way so that their prayers would not reach His ears.
LAMENTATIONS 3:44 (KJV) says,
Thou hast covered thyself with a cloud, that our prayers should not pass through.
God covers Himself with clouds in such a way that the prayers of the wicked would not be able to pass through, because their prayers are an annoyance to Him.
JOHN 9:31 (KJV) says,
Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.
However, we have to realize also that, there are times that God does not answer even the prayers of a righteous person. Why?
JAMES 4:3 (KJV) says,
Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lust.
Do not forget, God is love. So, if He sees that what you are asking for is something which will do you harm, or if it is something which will make you indulge in worldly pleasures, He will not give it to you. And you have to understand that it is His love for you that prompted Him not to give you what you want, because He doesn’t want you to go amiss or to fall to sinfulness.
Just like a loving parent who would not yield to the request for a blade of his three-year-old child, even if he keeps on crying, because playing with blades could wound him; and neither would a parent give his child a ********* lighter or match to play on because that could cause fire.
God is like that. If He sees that what you are praying for will do you good, He will surely grant it; but if what you are asking for will do you harm, or will lead you to destruction, He will never give it to you even if you repeatedly pray for it.
MATTHEW 7:9-11 (KJV) says,
9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him serpent?
11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
Keep in mind, God gives nothing but good things; He doesn’t give bad things, or things that will pose danger to His children. If an ordinary parent would not give his child stone when he asks for bread, or serpent when he asks for fish, how much more is our Father in heaven who knows and is capable of giving what is best for us, His children.
If an ordinary parent, despite his limitations, would not give his children anything that will compromise their safety and protection, all the more is our Father in heaven who cares not only for our physical welfare but most especially for our spiritual well-beings.
If we will only put ourselves in the position of God, we will come to understand the reasons why God does not grant all the prayers of men, or why we need to wait long before we get answers to our prayers.
In addition, God observes perfect timing in granting our prayers. God gives us what we need at its perfect time. When He sees that the right time has come for you to have it, He will give it to you even if you don’t ask for it.
PROVERBS 19:14 (KJV) says,
House and riches are the inheritance of fathers: and a prudent wife is from the LORD.
If you are righteous, and when God sees that the right time has come for you to have a spouse, He will give it to you even if you do not pray for it. Just like what He did to Adam. Adam did not ask for a wife; in fact, he did not have any idea about woman because there was no other human being in the Garden of Eden that time. But when God saw that he already needed a companion and helpmate, God gave him Eve.
GENESIS 2:18 (KJV) says,
And the LORD God, said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Upon seeing the situation of Adam, what did God do?
GENESIS 2:21-23 (KJV) says,
21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
God gives what we need at the right time. Remember Adam was not given a woman at once. God made him realize first the would-be importance of a woman to his life. For a long time, his companions were only the different kinds of animals, birds, etc. And none of them could be of personal help to him. For instance, when his back got itchy, he had nobody to scratch it for him. If he would let the tiger or the lion scratch his back, he would end up wounded and bleeding because both of them had sharp claws. So, God gave him a helpmate, a wife, even if he did not ask for it.
EPHESIANS 3:20 (KJV) says,
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
God gives even the things that we do not even think of, even the things that we do not ask for, if He sees our need for them. I have experienced this many times in my life. God has given me lots of things which I did not ask for and things which I did not even think of. For example, I did not pray to God to give me grandchildren. In fact, I did not even think that there will come a time in my life that I will need grandchildren. But at His perfect time, God gave them to me, and they now serve as my source of joy now that I am quite old.
At this point, I have realized the importance of grandchildren to elderly people like me. At my age, I feel pain in my joints, in my knees especially, that is why I have difficulty in rising again after our congregational prayer. But because God had seen that I would need the assistance of my grandchildren in my senior years, now I have a grandson who immediately comes to my aid every time he sees me struggling to rise after our congregational prayer. He never fails to assist me in standing up again. And I am very thankful to God for giving me wonderful grandchildren even if I did not ask for them.
Always remember, God has His reasons for granting, for not immediately granting, and even for not granting at all, our prayers. He knows what is best for us.
Every person who prays and makes a request to God definitely wants his prayers to be answered and his request to be granted at the soonest time possible. But that does not happen all the time. While it is true that some prayers are readily granted, there are also prayers that are not granted at all, and sometimes, if granted, it takes a while before the person receives it. But what could be the reasons behind these?
First of all, you have to understand that there is always a valid reason why God does not instantly grant the prayers and requests of a person. God’s response to prayers sometimes depends on the person making it – if he is upright, or if he is wicked. One thing is for sure, God does not listen to the prayers of a wicked man.
Consider what PROVERBS 15:8 (KJV) says,
The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
God is delighted with the prayers of the upright, and we can be assured that He listens to his prayers.
1 JOHN 5:14 (KJV) says,
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
God listens to the prayers of the upright especially so if what he asks for is something that is in accordance to His will.
On the other hand, what does the Bible say if the one making the request, or if the one praying, is wicked or an evildoer?
1 PETER 3:10-12 (KJV) says,
10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
God admonishes people to be upright, to do righteousness, to do good deeds, and to speak without guile. Even a person’s tongue should be disciplined because the tongue that we use in speaking is the very tongue that we use in praying.
If the person praying is somebody who deliberately does evil things and intentionally defies the word of God, even if he keeps on praying, God will never listen to him. God is not deaf but He has a way of evading the prayers of the wicked; He has a way so that their prayers would not reach His ears.
LAMENTATIONS 3:44 (KJV) says,
Thou hast covered thyself with a cloud, that our prayers should not pass through.
God covers Himself with clouds in such a way that the prayers of the wicked would not be able to pass through, because their prayers are an annoyance to Him.
JOHN 9:31 (KJV) says,
Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.
However, we have to realize also that, there are times that God does not answer even the prayers of a righteous person. Why?
JAMES 4:3 (KJV) says,
Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lust.
Do not forget, God is love. So, if He sees that what you are asking for is something which will do you harm, or if it is something which will make you indulge in worldly pleasures, He will not give it to you. And you have to understand that it is His love for you that prompted Him not to give you what you want, because He doesn’t want you to go amiss or to fall to sinfulness.
Just like a loving parent who would not yield to the request for a blade of his three-year-old child, even if he keeps on crying, because playing with blades could wound him; and neither would a parent give his child a ********* lighter or match to play on because that could cause fire.
God is like that. If He sees that what you are praying for will do you good, He will surely grant it; but if what you are asking for will do you harm, or will lead you to destruction, He will never give it to you even if you repeatedly pray for it.
MATTHEW 7:9-11 (KJV) says,
9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him serpent?
11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
Keep in mind, God gives nothing but good things; He doesn’t give bad things, or things that will pose danger to His children. If an ordinary parent would not give his child stone when he asks for bread, or serpent when he asks for fish, how much more is our Father in heaven who knows and is capable of giving what is best for us, His children.
If an ordinary parent, despite his limitations, would not give his children anything that will compromise their safety and protection, all the more is our Father in heaven who cares not only for our physical welfare but most especially for our spiritual well-beings.
If we will only put ourselves in the position of God, we will come to understand the reasons why God does not grant all the prayers of men, or why we need to wait long before we get answers to our prayers.
In addition, God observes perfect timing in granting our prayers. God gives us what we need at its perfect time. When He sees that the right time has come for you to have it, He will give it to you even if you don’t ask for it.
PROVERBS 19:14 (KJV) says,
House and riches are the inheritance of fathers: and a prudent wife is from the LORD.
If you are righteous, and when God sees that the right time has come for you to have a spouse, He will give it to you even if you do not pray for it. Just like what He did to Adam. Adam did not ask for a wife; in fact, he did not have any idea about woman because there was no other human being in the Garden of Eden that time. But when God saw that he already needed a companion and helpmate, God gave him Eve.
GENESIS 2:18 (KJV) says,
And the LORD God, said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Upon seeing the situation of Adam, what did God do?
GENESIS 2:21-23 (KJV) says,
21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
God gives what we need at the right time. Remember Adam was not given a woman at once. God made him realize first the would-be importance of a woman to his life. For a long time, his companions were only the different kinds of animals, birds, etc. And none of them could be of personal help to him. For instance, when his back got itchy, he had nobody to scratch it for him. If he would let the tiger or the lion scratch his back, he would end up wounded and bleeding because both of them had sharp claws. So, God gave him a helpmate, a wife, even if he did not ask for it.
EPHESIANS 3:20 (KJV) says,
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
God gives even the things that we do not even think of, even the things that we do not ask for, if He sees our need for them. I have experienced this many times in my life. God has given me lots of things which I did not ask for and things which I did not even think of. For example, I did not pray to God to give me grandchildren. In fact, I did not even think that there will come a time in my life that I will need grandchildren. But at His perfect time, God gave them to me, and they now serve as my source of joy now that I am quite old.
At this point, I have realized the importance of grandchildren to elderly people like me. At my age, I feel pain in my joints, in my knees especially, that is why I have difficulty in rising again after our congregational prayer. But because God had seen that I would need the assistance of my grandchildren in my senior years, now I have a grandson who immediately comes to my aid every time he sees me struggling to rise after our congregational prayer. He never fails to assist me in standing up again. And I am very thankful to God for giving me wonderful grandchildren even if I did not ask for them.
Always remember, God has His reasons for granting, for not immediately granting, and even for not granting at all, our prayers. He knows what is best for us.