QUESTION:
"What do I do when it seems that God is not answering my prayer?"
He has His own timing because He's working all kinds of things together.
ANSWER:
First, I'll tell you what I do: I go back to the examination table and ask God, "Is there anything in me that is hindering my prayers? Is there unconfessed sin in my life? Has unforgiveness taken root in my heart?" Once I have brought those areas before the Lord, I wait on God. He has His own timing because He's working all kinds of things together—not just on two or three fronts, but hundreds of fronts—in order to bring fulfillment to the prayer. Be sure that you are praying according to the will of God—not for a selfish cause but for the glory of Jesus and His Kingdom. Seek first His Kingdom, and He will take care of your needs.
Second, I think most Christians living in the 21st century have a short attention span. We start praying for something and then give up if we do not get the answer within 24 hours. But God doesn't work that way. When God burdens me to pray for something or someone, I do not let go. Some of my biggest prayers for God's Kingdom have taken seven, eight, eleven years for God to answer. In Luke 18, when Jesus gave the example of the woman knocking on the door of the unjust judge, she did not give up the first time he said, "Go away." She kept coming back. Think of how much more God, who is not like that judge, is anxious to hear His children pray to Him, cry out to Him, and stay there until they get the answer. So don't give up. Keep on praying!
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