Don’t stop praying

It seems like our prayers fall on deaf ears sometimes. If may feel like your prayers are going up into space and never landing anywhere. The devil convinces many of us that our prayers are useless, and they do not matter since God does not respond immediately. Don’t stop praying. Patience is a virtue that many of us do not possess.

When it seems like God is not hearing or answering my petitions and cries for help, I remind myself of amazing heroes in the Bible. Abraham waited for a promise to be fulfilled and he sought the Lord’s timing. The Lord promised Abraham a son. He guaranteed Abraham an heir through Sarah. It took Abraham 25 years to receive the promise God has given him and Sarah.

“And the Lord did to Sarah as he had promised.” (Genesis 21:1)

Remember Joseph? He enjoyed the favor of his father, but it came with a cost. His brothers despised him and grew to hate him because of it. To make matters worse, he seemed to not have much of a filter on his mouth and relayed to his father and brother his dreams of them serving him. His brothers chose to silence him and, rather than killing him, he was sold into slavery, and they lied to their faither. The believed it was the last time they would see him, but they were seriously wrong. Years passed by as Joseph endured slavery, false accusations, prison sentences, and eventually gaining the favor of the Pharoah through it all. He believed, prayed and trusted the Lord even when he couldn’t see the plan.

No one can forget about the Israelites wandering in the desert for 40 years. Yes, they certainly made mistakes and lost faith in the Lord during those years. Have you been there? I have certainly doubted at times. Yet, Moses and Joshua stood firm and trusted the Lord. They worshiped, they prayed, and the believed. Moses allowed sin to creep into his life as well during this period. If you have endured a “wilderness” period in your life, then you understand how easy it is for Satan to slip in and bring sin into your life. The power of prayer is also shown during this time because it was the prayers of Moses that prevented God from destroying the Israelites because of their rebellion.

I do not know any Christian familiar with the story of Job that can forget about it. As we say in the South, “bless his heart.” Job understood suffering and was afflicted in multiple ways. He endured much of what we all have jointly endured. It is in our human nature and heart to cry out for answers and expect immediate responses. Job prayed. He cried. He remained faithful. He prayed some more. At the end of it all, Job was blessed even more abundantly than he was prior to the suffering. If you are suffering, remember Job and trust the Lord that blessed him is waiting to bless you as well.

Lastly, I want to mention one of my favorites. King David is an amazing story of human faults, trust, faithfulness, and failures. He is the epitome of being human. In Psalm 40:1 he writes, “I waited patiently for the Lord, he turned to me and heard my cry.” David ran from King Saul, hiding in caves and having arrows fired at him. He was nothing but a shepherd boy that God called from the fields to be king. Yet, he had to wait for the proper time for God’s promise to be fulfilled.

We don’t like to wait. It is a common misconception that if our prayers are not answered quickly then they are not heard. That could not be farther from the truth. God hears you. He answers in His time and His time alone. “One day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (for the Lord)” (2 Peter 3:8 emphasis mine)

Don’t stop praying. Your answer is on its way. The Lord’s ears are tuned to your cry. He sees every tear. He feels every heartache. He understands every pain. Don’t stop praying.