Scripture Focus:
1 Peter 5:7 -https://www.bible.com/bible/111/1PE.5.7.NIV
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6 - https://www.bible.com/bible/111/PHP.4.6.NIV
Romans 8:28 - https://www.bible.com/bible/111/ROM.8.28.NIV
Introduction:
This blog post is about how God answers prayer. It is broken down to three parts:
Working with God to Answer Prayers
Letting go and allowing God to work
Unanswered prayers
I am writing from my own experience over the years of how I have seen God answer prayer. I will be using examples from my own life to demonstrate this. I pray these examples will be helpful and something you may be able to relate to. I hope that my experiences will shed some light on what God is teaching you in different situations.
Part 1
Working with God to Answer Prayers
Working with God to answer prayers is when God speaks to you about doing your part in answering your prayer request. I will include some examples of things you may be praying for.
Better Health
You may be praying for God to give you better health.
God may ask you to:
Make healthier choices with your diet
Sleep early
Exercise
Drink more water
Distance yourself from negative things
Distance yourself from negative people.
We have a part in answering our own prayers and God will give us the grace to do our part. God will do what we are unable to do on our own. It is important to know that if we don’t do our part, sometimes our prayers won’t be answered. We must pray for matters that are a part of God's Will.
When you pray for something, pay particular attention to the thoughts that you are having regarding the very thing you are praying about. It could be God answering your prayer, by telling you the part you need to do.
Decreasing Stress
You could be praying for decreasing stress in your life.
God may ask you to the following:
Cut some things out of your life that are not positive or productive.
Avoiding spending too much money on credit cards.
Changing your schedule including: canceling, postponing, or discontinuing a few things
Being proactive about planning for the next day by preparing the night prior.
Proper time management including: going to bed earlier and deceasing time on social media or television.
The Holy Spirit may reveal to you things that could be causing unnecessary stress. It is God’s Will for us to have peace and joy. He will show us what changes can be made to have peace. We may not be happy with the changes. However, over time, the changes are worth it. The benefits of decreasing stress include, better health, increased energy and efficiency in completing tasks.
Relationships
Another example of praying for something, and having your part to do is, having better relationships. God may tell you to be a better listener, and not always give your opinion unless it is positive. He may also ask that you do not say anything at all. He may tell you to be a person of your word, keeping promises and deadlines, not being late and making people wait, and not cancelling without notice.
These are examples of things that can ruin relationships with people. I used to be like this and God has taught me to always be a person of your word.If you say you are going to do something, follow through with it or don’t make the promise to begin with.
Part 2
Letting go and Allowing God to Work
There are times, we don’t have any control in our prayers. These are the times we need to completely cast our care on to God and trust Him alone to help us out completely.
One of the hardest spiritual lessons to learn, is learning to let go of control. There some things in life we can control, and then there are things in life we have no control over.
There may be someone in your life, you are praying for, and they are making bad decisions. You want them to change, but you can’t make them change. Only God through His Holy Spirit can work to change a person’s heart.
God can work on a person as you pray for them.He can soften their hearts and speak to them to change in the direction that is best for their life.
However, each of us has free will to choose to listen to the Holy Spirit, or whatever we want. Although you may be praying for someone, they may seem to not be changing. We have to sometimes let it go, and let God work things out for their good. (Romans 8:28)
Job/financial crisis
An example may be losing a job, and trusting God to provide.You may have done your part to apply for jobs, but you can't find a job in your field or profession. In this case, sometimes God wants us to wait for Him to open the door miraculously. Other times, He may place it in your heart to relocate to a place where there are more jobs or downsize/prepare for financial changes. Relocating and starting over also requires a lot of trusting God, as there are many unknown variables.
Health crisis
Another example of having to trust God completely, would be in regard to health issues. You may be worried about medical test results from the doctor for yourself or your loved one. You don’t know what to expect. The good news is God is prepared to handle any good or bad news you may have with the test. He is there to carry you through whatever you need to face.His Word says to cast your cares upon Him, for He cares for you.
Just like a parent enjoys seeing their child playing and having fun, our Heavenly Father, enjoys to see that we trust Him. We can trust Him and go about our day to be happy and peaceful.
Casting your cares on God is something you have to do every moment you start to worry about things. Asking God to give you the grace to do your part, whatever it may be, and trusting God to do ONLY what He can do. This also requires letting go and having peace in your life.
This is easier said than done. We need to pray for God to give us the grace to do things we are unable to do on our own strength. This is a spiritual lesson we will need to learn. As you grow in your relationship with God, it will be easier to trust God. You can reflect back on your experiences of trusting Him and how He came through for you. God is faithful, He is trustworthy, and He is true to His promises.
His promises in the Bible is something you can always hold on to and trust in no matter what happens.
Part 3
Unanswered prayers
There are times we are praying for something, and want God to answer our prayer. However, the very thing we are asking for can be harmful to us or someone else we love. If God answered these prayers, it could turn out to be a disaster. We don’t understand (in our limited knowledge), what the future could be like if those prayers were answered.
It is like a parent protecting their child from something harmful. The child has no idea what kind of harm their parent is protecting them from.The same way, when we pray for something, and don’t get the answer we want, trust God. God knows what is the best thing for us. He is a loving Father, who wants what is best for His children.
God does not want to deprive His children of good things. It is not because God doesn’t care about us. It is quite the opposite. God cares about us so much, that He has to say no, to protect us. It is hard for God to say no,just like any loving parent. However, because of His great love and wisdom, He knows that very thing we are asking for, may not be the best thing for us.
Death of a Loved One
Some prayers do not get answered. We don’t know why and we will not understand, until we see God face to face. My sister’s death as a teenager from cancer was heartbreaking for me. I don’t understand why it happened, but I trust God in the middle of my confusion and hurt. My deeper relationship with God started after her death. I needed God to get me through the incredible sorrow I was feeling. It has also given me a desire and compassion to help others in pain.
We also need to let go and trust that God knows what is best. God did not cause my sister to have cancer. We live in an imperfect world with disease,sickness and evil. The body we have is temporary and this life is temporary. The good news is we have a hope and a future. The future we have is with a heavenly body, with no more sickness, disease or pain. In Heaven, we will be in the presence of God. All these troubles we have faced will be over.
Understanding God’s Justice
God is a God of justice. He will work out all the wrongs in this life. I have heard how others have lost their faith, because of the evil and wicked things that are happening in the world.
We need to realize Satan is the cause of the evil and wicked things that we see around us, not God. Satan works through people and circumstances to hurt you.
Don’t be discouraged when you see evil things happening, God will hold people accountable in this life, and the next. Whatever a person sows they will reap and will have an accounting for their own actions. ( Galatians 6:7) . Also know that the good things you are doing will be rewarded in this life and the next.
Let us pray together in agreement
Heavenly Father,
I thank you for every person reading this blog right now, and their desire to draw closer to you. I pray you would enable us to cast all of our cares on You because you care for us. Give us wisdom in knowing what our part is and the grace to do what you are asking us to do. Please give us the grace to let go and do only what You can do. We pray for all the prayer requests and burdens we are all carrying. We lay them all into your Hands and ask for Your Peace in return.
We ask this in Jesus name.
Amen
If anyone has not received Jesus as their Lord and Savior and wishes to do so, please say the prayer below:
Heavenly Father,
Please forgive me for my sins. I invite you Jesus into my heart as my Lord and Savior. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. Help me to follow You.
I ask this in Jesus name.
Amen
Please feel free to email me with any prayer request at Hisdaughter@convowithgod.com.
Prayer request are always confidential.
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