9 Reasons why God hasn’t answered your prayer
Do you ever feel that God hasn’t answered your prayer?
I heard someone say once that God answers prayers in three ways. Yes, no and wait.
And, in the case of my daughter’s various prayer requests over the years I have found myself adding number four; ‘You are joking aren’t you?’ God hears all your prayers, in the book of Proverbs in the bible it says ‘God hears the prayers of the righteous’ – (Proverbs 15-29) but, the way in which he chooses to answer your prayer may not be how you expect.
As I was thinking about my own ‘unanswered prayers’ I pondered two things.
The first is that I’m sure in God’s mind there is no such thing as an unanswered prayer.
I imagine God thinking ‘I’ve answered it a hundred times Lise, you’re just not recognising my answer’.
It’s our human nature to focus on the so called ‘unanswered prayers’. So is it really ‘unanswered’ or is it being answered in a way that we either don’t see, don’t understand or simply don’t like?
The second thought is that in amongst the ‘unanswered’ prayers are a multitude of prayers that are being answered every day both big and small. Do we see all of these?
The answered prayers are often acknowledged and passed over quickly. A quick thanks and then we are back pointing out the list of the unanswered.
We can be guilty of focusing on the ‘unanswered’.
So maybe this post should be titled;
‘Why we see unanswered prayer, but God sees it as
answered’ (just not how we want it answered).
With this in mind then, here are 9 ways that God has already answered your ‘unanswered prayer’
1. It’s not God’s will (God’s answer: No)
It may not be God’s will.
It may not be God’s will. If you’re asking for something that doesn’t align with God’s will or purpose for your life (or someone else’s) your prayer may be unanswered.
It’s natural to think of our prayers as an individual prayer concerning only ourselves. But, if we believe that God directs and sees the whole picture, then how our prayer is answered
doesn’t just affect our life but a multitude of other people and other factors.
2. It’s not the right time or season (God’s answer: Wait)
It’s not the right time or season. God could need you to do some further work on your own character or behaviour. He may need you to have more experience in a particular area or for you to complete or go through a specific set of experiences for the prayer to be answered.
Jesus said ‘It is not for you to know the times or dates the father has set by his own authority’ (Acts 1:7)
God is the ultimate authority, it’s not for us to dictate how and when God should answer our prayers.
3. You’re praying for the wrong thing (God’s answer: No)
If you pray out of selfish ambition or for something that doesn’t align with God’s purpose for your life your prayer may be unanswered.
4. God needs you to wait (God’s answer: Wait)
God may need you to wait. God’s timing is always perfect. You may need to wait for the right time or opportunity before your prayer can be answered.
5. He’s working stuff out in the background (God’s answer: Wait)
God is working stuff out in the background. Or a better word for this is ‘Alignment’.
The Bible says, ‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose’. God is still working on it even when we can’t feel it or see it.
And this is where our faith and patience kicks in.
When all the moving parts come together under God’s direction and timing, the prayer can be fully answered.
The timing might be days, weeks, months, years, or even in hundreds of years to come. Jesus’s own birth is an example of this. His birth was predicted by prophets and prayed for
hundreds of years before his actual birth.
6. You need to say sorry- God’s answer: (No-until you say sorry)
If we carry unforgiveness, if we haven’t said sorry (repented) for the things we have done wrong, God can say no.
7. Lack of faith (God’s answer- No, until you ask in faith)
Jesus talks about coming to prayer in faith (Matthew 21:22). This means believing in Jesus, believing that he will answer (he doesn’t say he will always answer the way we want) and coming to God in prayer with a heart of faith.
8. You haven’t asked (God’s answer- No-until you ask)
Have you actually asked God in prayer? Our God is a 24 hr listening God. He wants us to come to him with our prayers. He’s also a God of incredible detail. He cares about the detail. He listens and he wants to bless you. Could it be that you haven’t asked in prayer yet?
Think about your prayer and what you are asking for. Be specific and don’t forget the detail.
9. It’s just a ‘no’
Sometimes it’s just a ‘no’. We may not want to hear it or accept it but a door can remain closed.
To us it seems unfair, unjust. We ask God ‘why?’ and we are not met with an answer. These are the prayers that we can ask God in eternity. And the full explanation in heaven will satisfy us there.
God doesn’t say he will always give us the answers we want. The Bible often points to his mystery, and to his ultimate authority.
The direct access we have to God through prayer can allow us to forget the authority and mystery of God. But God is God, only God has complete authority. Only God knows why, when, and how. Now this doesn’t make a ‘no’ any easier, but it does push us to remember that God despite all circumstances is sovereign.
We fit into God’s will, he doesn’t fit into ours.
What’s your experience of answered and unanswered prayer?
