Speaker: Sis Techie Rodriguez ,Elder, The Lord's Flock Charismatic Community

“ Calling on the Lord ”

God Answers Our Prayers

G od always answers our prayers. He said, “Call to me, and I will answer you.” (Jeremiah 33:3). Unlike our local telephone companies, the Lord has no busy tone. We can call God directly without passing through operators as in local phone services.

L et us “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 ). The Lord is always available to answer our prayers. When we encounter trials in life, we should pray to God immediately. Prayer should be our first recourse – not our last.

When God Answers Our Prayers

W hen does God answer our prayers? The answer to our prayers depends on God. Sometimes, He answers immediately; sometimes He answers later.

T he following are the possibilities when we call on the Lord:

1. G od Immediately Answers Our Prayers

? “W e have this confidence on him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” (1 John 5:14). We have to make sure that what we are praying to God is according to his will. He will answer our prayer immediately.

? “The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful.” (James 5:16). God answers immediately fervent and powerful prayers of righteous persons.

A n example of an answered prayer from a righteous person is that of Zechariah. “But the angel said to him, ‘Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall name him John.'” (Luke 1:13).

? “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you.” (John 15:7). The prayers of those who believe in Jesus and observe his words will also be answered immediately by God.

2. G od Answers Before Our Prayer Is Finished

T he Lord may answer our prayer even before we finish praying. “Before they call, I will answer; while they are yet speaking, I will hearken to them.” (Isaiah 65:24). “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (Matthew 6:8).

3. A nswer To Our Prayer Delayed Until

the Solution Humanly Impossible

W hen we still depend on ourselves to solve our problems, we will not get the Lord's immediate answer to our prayer. God waits until the solution is humanly impossible and until we cry out to him and surrender everything to his control.

W hen our prayer seems without any answer from the Lord, let us humble ourselves and let him take control. Let us cry, “Lord, I can do nothing without you! I surrender everything to you.”

4. A nswer To Our Prayer Delayed By God

T he Lord may also delay his answer to our prayer. There are many examples in the Bible of the delayed answers of God to men's prayers.

? A braham waited for 25 years before he became a father to many nations. His 90-year old wife, Sarah, bore him a child when he was a hundred years old. (Genesis 17:17, 21:2).

? M ary and Martha sent word to Jesus about the illness of Lazarus. Jesus was delayed in responding and arrived when Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. He raised Lazarus from the dead for the glory of God. (John 11:1-44).

I n the Bible, there are also many touching examples of how God answers prayers:

? D aniel was praying to the Lord for the end of captivity of the Israelites in Babylon . “I was still occupied with my prayer, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, presenting my petition to the Lord, my God, on behalf of his holy mountain – I was still occupied with this prayer, when Gabriel, the one whom I had seen before in vision, came to me in rapid flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. He instructed me in these words: ‘Daniel, I have now come to give you understanding. When you began your petition, an answer was given which I have come to announce, because you are beloved. Therefore, mark the answer and understand the vision.'” (Daniel 9:20-23).

“‘F ear not, Daniel,' he continued, ‘from the first day you made up your mind to acquire understanding and humble yourself before God, your prayer was heard. Because of it I started out, but the prince of the kingdom of Persia stood in my way for twenty-one days, until finally Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me. I left him there with the prince of the kings of Persia , and came to make you understand what shall happen to your people in the days to come; for there is yet a vision concerning those days.” (Daniel 10:12-14). The prince of the kingdom of Persia (Satan) delayed the delivery by Angel Gabriel of God's message to David.

5. A nswers To Our Prayers Delayed By Satan

T he answers to our prayers may be delayed by Satan [just as when he delayed the message of God to Daniel (Daniel 10:13 )]. Let us remember, “For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the spirits in the heavens.” (Ephesians 6:12).

Why God Delays Answers To Our Prayers

W hy does God sometimes delay his answers to our prayers? The Lord may withhold his answers from us because He would like us to look at God's heart and discover his message for us. We may not be ready for his answers or blessings. We may have to be healed first before He gives us what we are asking. For us to receive immediately God's answers to our prayers might be to our harm and detriment.

W e should be ready to accept God's delay of his answers to our prayers. We trust God totally that the delay is for our own good.

Praying and Waiting

We should keep praying without ceasing. (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We should also know how to wait for God's answers to our prayers.

“B e still before the Lord; wait for God.” (Psalms 37:7). We should learn to pray and wait for God's answers. We sometimes fail to sustain our prayers because we are too anxious for immediate answers.

E ven when we are distressed, we should keep on praying and waiting for God's answers. N ehemiah wrote, “.…I asked them about the Jews, the remnant preserved after the captivity, and about Jerusalem , and they answered me: ‘The survivors of the captivity there in the province are in great distress and under reproach. Also, the wall of Jerusalem lies breached, and its gates have been gutted with fire.' When I heard this report, I began to weep and continued mourning for several days; I fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.” (Nehemiah 1:2-4)

N ehemiah prayed, “But remember, I pray, the promise which you gave through Moses, your servant, when you said: ‘Should you prove faithless, I will scatter you among the nations; but should you return to me and carefully keep my commandments, even though your outcasts have been driven to the farthest corner of the world, I will gather them from there, and bring them back to the place which I have chosen as the dwelling place for my name.'” (Nehemiah 1:8-9).

N ehemiah relied on the Lord and with his prayers, he obtained the king's agreement for the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem . (Nehemiah 2:1-6).

D elay in God's answers to our prayers is not a denial but a sign to go on. We should not get frantic if we do not get the Lord's answers immediately. We should have complete confidence in God. We only have to trust him. He is just waiting for us to surrender to his will. God will do mighty things still unknown to us. Let us not teach God what to do. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways my ways.” (Isaiah 55:8).

W hen God answers our prayers at a later time, the answers are better. Let us not grow weary praying and waiting for better answers. God knows what is best for us.