I really dont understand....why people treat God like santa claus? It hurts my heart when people ask me..'why God doesn't answer my prayers?'. Nowadays, our view of God is like He HAS to listen to our prayers like that....after all He did promise that when we ask anything in His name, He will give it to us right? (John 14:14).
In my life, I have always prayed in this manner, "Lord, I really desire this to happen, but if it's not your will, please don't do it. Let your will be done Lord." I thank my church leaders for teaching me this way of praying. In this way, I ask God for something that I really want but I still yield to His will at the end, which is far better than what I can ask for.
Sigh....Some people don't get it....God doesn't answer your prayers because HE IS GOOD. God is someone who doesn't change. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He has certain characteristics that doesn't change and that's what makes Him God. He doesn't change according to His mood. He is true to His Word.
"If He is true to His Word, then why doesn't God answer my prayer like what He promised?", you may ask. Whilst He promised that He will answer our prayers, He doesn't answer it if it's clashing with His nature.
I'll give an analogy. A good dad tells his 6 year old son, "Hey son, I'll be there for you whenever you need any help ok? Because I love you." So the son goes like, "OK!" (I mean any son would be happy to hear that). So of course the son remembered what his dad told him and suddenly there was something that he needed help with. So he asks dad with some tears coming out of his eyes, "Dad, help me up please, I wanna play with the knife like how mommy does. Looks like fun!! Daddy please?!?!???Can I??!?? Please?!?!?????"
Well, I guess and hope that there are not any cruel father's out there that will let their young son/daughter play with a real knife. Sometimes we really ask God for something like how that kid asks his father in the analogy. We always think that a certain thing is good for us or we always had something that we always wanted and asked God for it. You know what's the worse part? We complain when God doesn't grant us that prayer.
Imagine that in the same analogy, the kid starts to say things like "Dad!! You told me that you'll be there for me whenever i needed help. But why when I asked you, you didnt keep your promise. WHY?!?!!!?!!???" Can you imagine how the father would have felt. He only did it because he loved his son and all his son did was complain and in a way called him a liar.
Sigh... All God did was care for us and we get mad at Him. I used a 6 year old son to represent us because in comparison to God, our knowledge of what is good or bad or anything else is far superior. In fact we are like 1 year old babies or younger. Can you see now how much God loves us? He loves us so much not to answer some of our prayers because He knows that answering some of them is either bad for you or it's bad for you at that time. The problem with us is that instead of feeling that God loves us by doing that, we feel that He doesn't love us.
Actually, I am one of those people. As humans sometimes or most of the time it's really hard to see how certain prayers unanswered can be a good thing. But by faith, I know that HE is GOOD and I choose to trust that He always does things that are good for me no matter how it seems.
Here are some promises for us to remember when we have unanswered prayers or when we feel that God doesn't care or love us.
Romans 8:38-39
38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
With this few verses, I hope that it will encourage you to continue to pray and ask God for stuff but always yield to what He wants because Daddy knows best. God loves you all. If He gave his only prized possession (Jesus) will He not give you things which are good for you? I'll end with this passage of scripture
Matthew 7:9-11
9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
God Bless...
In this post, I just want to say sorry to God. I started this blog for the reason of encouraging others and writing some of the thoughts that God put in me. However I totally forgot one thing. In my first serious post entitled 'Thinking D.E.E.P.', the first acronym stands for depend.
I realized that recently it's so hard to post anything because I did not depend on Him. I used my brain to think of the things I wanna write but nothing comes out. If I want to make a difference in the world either in using this blog or other means, I need to depend on Him. People who wrote the Bible all wrote through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. In 2 Peter 1:21 writes, "For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." That's what made the bible so powerful, the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
So from now on, I will not post anything unless prompted by the Holy Spirit.This doesn't mean that I will be posting less. It just means that I will post topics which the Holy Spirit tells me to post. For instance, the series on purpose was more of my own idea. God told me to write some other stuff but I thought of finishing the series first. I guess now the series will have to wait. For those who are anxious for some guidance on how to know God's will in your life, I guess you'll have to wait. Sorry about that. But I know that God has His timing of doing things. And I want to follow His plan.
Sorry Lord! May You continue to speak to people through this blog using Your way not mine. Amen.