Is God Answering Your Prayers?

John 14:14- You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

Psalm 13:1- How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?

Lamentations 3:25- The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

Do you ever feel like God has forgotten you?  That maybe He is preoccupied with more important concerns than your own?  I fight feeling this way sometimes.

I am a praying person.  Sometimes I pray specific requests while other times my prayers are broader and more general.  Whenever I pray, I have a verse like John 14:14 in the back of my mind.  Knowing that I am praying for things in the name of Christ, the chances of them being answered is pretty good, right?  Because I am human, I can easily become frustrated after a few weeks when my prayers appear to go unanswered.

I know I'm not alone in this way of thinking.  In Psalm 13, David has grown weary of God apparently ignoring him.  We don't know exactly what David was looking for but he obviously hadn't received it yet.

I'm guessing that you can identify with David's feelings.  Even though many of your prayers are answered in an obvious way, there are some that seem to go unanswered.  Why is this?  Why are some prayers answered and others seemingly go ignored?

I believe there are two answers to this question:

1. His plan     2. His timing

God has a plan for each of us that is beyond what we are able to see.  Answering our prayers is one way for God to work that plan. However, for those prayers to be answered, they must be consistent with His plan.

God's plan occurs on His time which the Bible describes as "perfect".  Things in this life occur when He needs them to, not when we want them to.  Even though God views each of our lives as significant, the time that our lives occupy is not.  We perceive time far differently than God.  So even when prayers appear to be unanswered, they just may not be answered... yet.

God knows what's best for you, and He knows exactly what you need.  I believe He answers or doesn't answer your prayers accordingly.  You can take comfort in this fact as referenced in Lamentations 3:25:

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

Answered prayer or not.

Questions:

1. What are your expectations when you pray?  What happens when those expectations are not met?

2. How does God's faithfulness to you impact your view of Him and your view of prayer in general?