PRAYER REQUESTS



Have you ever prayed and prayed and prayed and then prayed some more wondering if God heard your prayer requests? Yes, me too! I was even told once that I need to read God’s fine print—God has a loophole clause concerning answered prayer in 1 John 5:14-15. “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” This person told me you can pray all you want, but if it’s not “his will” you’re not going to get what you asked for—to bad, so sad! No! Too good— so good for you!

Think clear about what you know about God. God is all-knowing. God sees all things. When you ask for things, you ask with limited understanding. When God answers, he answers with complete understanding. He always replies with your best interests in mind, because doing his will is always in your best interests.

Have you noticed what happens when children ask their parent/s for things that weren't good for them? Or they would ask for things that were second best? In that parent’s wisdom, they didn't always give them exactly what they asked for, did they?

God’s the same way. He hears your prayers with the ears of a loving Father, and he answers according to what is best for you, in accordance with “his will.” I’ve heard folks say, “If it's God's will it's going to happen anyway.” That's simply not true. You can miss out on God's will by not asking. James said, “You don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it.”(James 4:2) God wants you to know that he listens to your prayers and he responds to your prayers. If you ask for the wrong thing, he'll say no. He won't give you something that isn't ultimately good for you. But if you ask for too little, or nothing at all, you limit what God can do in your life.

God is waiting to answer your prayers. He'll only give you what is good for you - what is consistent with his will for you — but that includes far more than many of us are willing to ask for.

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