Musings on prayer and faith

Prayer doesn’t always work as quickly as we would like it to. God has a different time schedule and plan for us mere humans.  I am still waiting on God to answer prayers I have been praying for over 20 years but I can’t give up on my faith. The Bible says in Luke 18 that an old woman seeking justice from an unjust judge refused to stop approaching him until she got what she wanted. He asked the question in Luke 18: 8 'when He comes shall He find faith on the earth?' We can also find comfort in the fact that our God is not like this arrogant judge who only gave in because he was tired of her bothering him.

Jesus made the point that the old lady's faith is the type we need to get answers to stubborn problems. God likes when we persevere and wait on Him, just as another great bible character did- Abraham.  Remember Abraham waited 25 years for God to bless him with Isaac.  Although Abraham did take matters into his own hands with Hagar, God still honoured his promise to Abraham and commended his faith as righteousness.

I wish I was like Abraham but I'm not there yet. Despite having to wait for a loooong time for some answers to prayer, God has been gracious enough to answer some of my prayers practically straight away.  One such response is in my current job when I asked God to reduce the workload.  A couple of months later my supervisor told me that this had been agreed by senior management.  I praised the Lord inwardly, reflecting that He is such a great Father who cares about even our little problems.  I see daily how God provides for my every need and takes the time to bless me.  I am also trying to be more mindful of communicating with God throughout the day.  I am taking small steps to accomplish this goal but I know I still have a long way to go.

If you’re waiting for God to answer prayers which seem insurmountable then be encouraged. God has a plan and during this time your faith is being built.  He is perfecting patience and hope in you. Romans 8:25 reminds us 'if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Stay blessed all.