Beloved, when our prayers go unanswered, what do we do? There are times when we don’t know if God is listening to us. Or if we are in tune with God’s voice. I remember many years ago taking a class that said we would learn to hear God’s voice and know when it is God speaking to us. Still after the class was over and many years later, I still question whether God is speaking to me or if I am hearing Him at all. Is it my imagination, is it God, is it a demonic spirit? How can we discern this. How do I know if God is listening and I am hearing Him correctly?
The most challenging times are the times when we think our prayers are not answered or not heard. How long O Lord? We keep asking but don’t get an answer or is the answer delayed. I would first like to say that your prayers are heard! I know people on the pulpit sometimes say that God can’t hear you when you are doing something he doesn’t like. Then they say that God can see and hear everything you do that is wrong and you will be judged for it. So let’s simply assume he knows and hears your prayers.
Then why aren’t your prayers answered. According to the word of God, it could be one of these. Read to the end because I want to also encourage you that if you have been faithful in following Christ and living out the gospel, there could be another reason.
1. Unconfessed Sin
Isaiah 59:2 (KJV):
“But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.”
Sin can create a barrier between us and God, preventing prayers from being answered. Unconfessed or ongoing sin is a significant reason why prayers may go unheard.
2. Wrong Motives
James 4:3 (KJV):
“Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.”
Prayers that are motivated by selfish desires or wrong intentions are not likely to be answered. God answers prayers that align with His will and purposes.
3. Lack of Faith
James 1:6-7 (KJV):
“But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.”
When we pray without faith or trust in God’s ability to answer, we may not receive what we ask for. Faith is essential to prayer.
4. Unforgiveness
Mark 11:25 (KJV):
“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
Holding on to unforgiveness can hinder our prayers. God desires that we forgive others just as He forgives us, and harboring unforgiveness can block our relationship with Him.
5. Not According to God’s Will
1 John 5:14 (KJV):
“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us.”
God answers prayers that align with His will. Sometimes, our prayers may not be answered because they are not in line with God’s greater purpose and plan for our lives.
6. Not Listening to God’s Word
Proverbs 28:9 (KJV):
“He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination.”
When we ignore or disobey God’s Word, it affects our prayers. A heart that is resistant to God’s teachings may not be in the right place to receive answers to prayers.
Before, we end this blog, I would like encourage you to keep praying. You may be wondering why other people’s prayers are answered when they aren’t living God honoring lives? You may feel discouraged when you see this happen and may think that God doesn’t see you, love you, or care about you. But it isn’t that, sometimes, God is still working in and through your life so that you can get a greater reward. Joseph had to wait many years from when was thrown into the pit util his vision came to fruition. Yet, he waited on God’s timing. and became second only to Pharaoh in stature and wealth.
I pray that the Lord will bless you and encourage you and you will stay close to Him and not lose faith. Blessings!
Illumine Ministries is about living out our faith not just on the weekends but everyday, even through the ups and downs, the successes and failures, the challenges of our daily lives, encouraging one another to finish well.
