Why Won’t God Answer My Prayers?
Why Won’t God Answer My Prayers?
Episode 16
Hello, and welcome to In the Lighthouse: your safe harbor from the storm. This is Daphne Collins, your Lighthouse Keeper and host for our time together. And speaking of the storm, why don’t you come in and shake off the rain from the tempest outside, and sit here by the fireplace while I pour you a cup of tea? Is that better? Do you feel warmer? Good.
Let’s talk about something each and every one of us tends to ask while in the midst of a storm. That something is unanswered prayer and what it is that might prevent them from reaching God’s ears. Do you feel as if you’re living through an endless period asking God to help you? You might ask, “Does God hear my prayers? Does he pick and choose which prayers he will answer? Are there certain people who have God’s ear over others?” I understand your questions because I’ve felt the same way in the past. I ask friends to pray for me when I’m going through difficulties, and, if an answer is a long time coming, I ask God to reveal what it is that might be hindering a response. And, in answer to the previous questions: yes, God absolutely hears every prayer. Psalm 139:1-4 declares the reality of God’s omnipresence and awareness of our every situation and responds to prayer through the lens of his sovereignty with a “yes,” “no,” and “wait.” Yes, there are people whose prayers are heard by God and they are the ones who abide in Jesus and are not hindered by unconfessed sin. The truth will be God’s response and if you are not prepared to accept the truth, then you have your answer. Sometimes a change of direction can be a painful process, but if we’re willing to trust God to be with us through the storm, we will come out stronger and wiser.
This episode is entitled, Why Won’t God Answer My Prayers? And my guest visiting here In the Lighthouse is our own Lady With the Lamp, Melissa Saenz, the writer, and presenter of the Eternal Treasures devotions. Melissa will share a testimony of her personal storm that took years before transformative results became evident in her life. When we come to the Lord in prayer and believe that what we ask, he will provide, God is faithful to respond. We must remember, however, that God’s response comes from our understanding of his sovereignty as asserted in Isaiah 55:8-9 when God speaks through his prophet and says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Although we are made in God’s image, we do not share his omniscience. This is an immutable characteristic that belongs only to our Creator. As such, we are unaware of the potential ramifications of what we ask of God. God knows the outcome because he is not limited to time and space; therefore, he will respond to us according to his will and purpose for our lives.
Accepting this reality and trusting God’s goodness will help the one praying for God’s reply to rest in their supplication. The challenge for the supplicant, however, is God’s timing. Melissa’s testimony is an example of a Christian believer waiting on the Lord to answer her prayers. Sometimes, the prayer response comes with unexpected surprises and blessings beyond our imagination. Okay, let’s get started!
When we proclaim Jesus as our Lord and Savior we are asking him into all aspects of our lives. There’s nothing too insignificant for our Good Shepherd who watches over his flock. Remember, we have free will, therefore, all decisions or choices made have consequences – whether good or bad. Abiding in Jesus provides the Christian believer privilege of access directly to the throne room when we pray. We now have a relationship with our heavenly Father through Jesus Christ, and we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. We are co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). Our relationship to the Godhead is only strengthened by abiding in Jesus and our willingness to obey.
Yet, in the course of the Christian life, the eventual question arises, “Why Won’t God Answer My Prayers?” One of the principal hindrances to answered prayer is unconfessed sin. If we believe that God is omniscient and omnipresent, we also understand that he is aware of any unrepented and unconfessed sin lurking in us. When the prophet Nathan made him aware of his great offenses, David acknowledged his sin before God when he confessed in Psalm 51:3-4 “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, only you, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge.” If we choose to stubbornly ignore and cling to sin, God will not hear our prayers as Proverbs 28:9 says, “If anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their prayers are detestable.”
Another hindrance to unanswered prayer comes from God’s examination of the content of our heart and its motivations. James 4:2-3 explains the reason for the “blockage” to our prayer. “You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.” God will not be mocked by displays of wicked covetousness and greed thinly veiled under a mask of pharisaic holiness.
The final two principal hindrances to answered prayer – unforgiveness and doubt – are the topic of Melissa’s testimony. To forgive is to “wipe the slate clean, to pardon, to cancel a debt.” It is an act of love, mercy, and grace – a decision to release someone from a wrong, despite what they’ve done against you. Bitterness resulting from unforgiveness can suffocate a heart seeking to follow Jesus. It blocks our access to the Father. Doubt can sometimes hide behind effective prayer, even if it is unintended. Moreover, we insult God if we doubt his character, purpose, and promise for our lives. We must pray to understand that whatever God's purpose is, it will always align with his sovereign will (Romans 8:28).
Some parts of what is heard may trigger traumatic memories, and may not be suitable for certain audiences; therefore, I caution adults and parents to use discretion with their young ones when listening to this episode.
Melissa Saenz, Lady With the Lamp
Show Notes
Opening Theme: Going For Gold
Introductory Theme: Piano by Twisterium
Transition Theme: Piano by Twisterium
Conclusion Theme: Love by Synthezx
Transcript of “Why Won’t God Answer My Prayers?” by Daphne Collins
Transcript of “The Demas Syndrome” by Laine Wilder
Melissa and her father, Johnnie
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3).
