Keep Asking

Christine Wyrtzen Devotional: 

UNANSWERED PRAYER
 
I want you to know, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I might reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles.  Romans 1:13
 

            Paul was prevented from going to Rome, the thing he repeatedly asked of God.  We are not told all the possible reasons God said 'no' but the list of 'whys' could be numerous.
            Paul asked for a good thing, didn't he?  It was noble.  Visit Rome.  Teach and encourage Christians.  This is the prayer God loves to answer with a yes, right?
            These are the mysteries of prayer that are hardest for God's children like me to understand.  It takes so much spiritual growth to pray consistently for things that are kingdom centered.  Then when I do, when my prayers are God-honoring, why wouldn't God answer them all with a yes?  Like ~

·        Praying for God to reach a prodigal child.
·        Praying for an unsaved loved one to come to faith.
·        Praying for ministry expansion for the sake of the Gospel.
·        Praying for the healing of a disease for God's glory.

            It is my experience that God says 'no', or 'wait', for many reasons.  Perhaps I need to be changed as I wait on God for that long-awaited answer.  I will learn endurance and the security of a child who asks without ceasing.  Jesus was clear about the nature of persistent prayer when he told the parable of the widow who kept asking and asking for what she wanted.  The point of the story in His own words (in Luke 18) was this ~ "Ask and don't give up."  This kind of childlike trust that God's heart is bent 'for' me while I keep asking is only something learned in the school of prayer.
            There are things I pray for this morning, ongoing requests that are deeply heartfelt, concerns that easily keep me up at night.  I pray for His deliverance and while there are glimmers of it now and then, the mighty hand of God has not moved yet.  I keep asking, tearfully, while checking my heart and the status of my relationship with God.  Am I angry He hasn't answered yet?  Do I feel entitled, by my 'performance', to a quicker answer?  Do I begin to question what kind of Father withholds the answer when the pain threshold is high?  Being honest on my knees and working out my feeble faith with prayer and the Word is a necessity or my faith can deteriorate under my limited perspective.
            Paul finally did get to Rome.  He kept asking but it took a while.  In the meantime, God took him to geographical areas that needed the Gospel more, Asia for one.  I keep asking too.  If it's warfare, I fight on my knees.  If it is God directly preventing it because there is something better for me, I stretch out my faith as I wait.
            If you feel stuck where you are and the answer you're looking for in prayer has not come, don't assume it won't.  Ask God to show you what you can do to be effective in the kingdom today, in small ways, right where you are.  That starts and ends with persistent prayer.

I wait.  I trust without sharp words on my tongue.  Your grace makes it possible.  Amen