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God answers our prayers, here is how

by Mathew Joys
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We see only a limited part, but God sees the whole picture. This is why we must seek God’s will when we pray, not just our own.

All devout people believe that God answers their prayers, which sustains the religion itself. 

Eshwar, Allah, Akal Purakh, Yahweh and Ahura Mazda — they are different names for Almighty God given by different religions. And yet, despite the manifest differences in how they practice their religions, at least three religions – Jews, Christians, and Muslims — have the same conception when it comes to God.

People pray to their God. Prayers can be benedictions (blessings), litanies (alternate statements, titles of the deity or deities, or petitions), ceremonial and ritualistic prayers, repetition or formula prayers like Christian Liturgy.

If ‘God’ answers your prayers, He is strengthening your faith. If He delays granting your wish, He is increasing your patience. If He does not answer, He has something better for you than what you asked for. This is not from the Bible, but what I understand from my experiences. As a firm believer who has some acquaintance with religions other than my own, I know God will answer your prayers. But that does not mean He will shower whatever you ask for because He knows well what is best for you.

God always listens to us when we pray. Let me try to give you the Christian perspective in a nutshell, which I know better. It may be the same for all other believers in the power of prayer.

The Holy Bible gives many instances of prayers God has heard and answered. He continues to answer prayers today. God has myriad blessings in store for you, which you can receive through prayers. Answering prayers is one of the many ways God shows His love. How do I know God even hears my prayers, you may ask. Sometimes it is as if He has turned a deaf ear to me. In doubt, you begin to wonder if it is even worthwhile praying.
Christians know God hears our prayers, because He has promised to listen to them! Even if He doesn’t always answer the way we think He should, He still hears us. The Psalmist declared, “As for me, I call to God … and he hears my voice” (Psalm 55:16-17).

Why does then God sometimes seem deaf to our prayers? One reason may be that we’ve allowed sin to take root in our hearts—and sin always cuts us off from God. It may be anger, hatred, prejudice, unclean habits, or something else that we have allowed to pollute our souls. This is why we Christians must ensure we’ve given our lives to Jesus Christ because He came into the world to cleanse us of our sins.

Often, however, God does not grant our prayers in the same way we wanted. He should because He loves us, and He knows what is best for us. It’s often said that God answers a prayer in one of three ways: “Yes,” “No,” and “Wait”. We see only a limited part, but God sees the whole picture. This is why we must seek God’s will when we pray, not just our own. The Bible says, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” (John 5:14-15).

Don’t be discouraged. Instead, thank God for His love for you, and learn to commit everything to Him in prayer. The Bible says, “Rejoice always, pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-17).

May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.  (2 Thessalonians 3:16)

Photo courtesy wirestock on Freepik

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1 comment

Tara shajan February 23, 2023 - 2:48 pm

Hi Mr Joy , Great insight . Well written. Yes we pray for many things , but our plans are not Gods plan . Thank you for this wonderful message.

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