Why doesn’t God answer my prayers?
The Bible is clear that prayer is important, if not essential, to our relationship with God. But prayer can be hard if you feel like you’ve been praying for the same thing for a long time and God isn’t listening to you. Praying can become exhausting, especially when we don’t see God answer our prayers immediately.
If you’ve started to feel like you’re not praying the right words or you’re just not a good enough Christian, be assured that God hears your prayers — He just might not be answering in the way you expect.
Is there a right way to pray?
There’s no blueprint to prayer, and there’s no correct way to pray — God doesn’t want us to spend our time trying to create the perfect prayer. Instead, He wants us to come to Him with our praises, desires, requests and even fears. However, the Bible does provide us with a few tips for prayer.
We should pray in faith.
God knows how many stars are in the sky and how many hairs are on our heads. If He knows these seemingly impossible things, why shouldn’t we trust Him to know the best plan for our life? If we want God to answer our prayers, we must believe that He can.
Matthew 7:7 (ESV) says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”
We should pray consistently.
When we pray for or about something, we shouldn’t stop at one prayer. We should consistently bring our requests and praises to God. I Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV) says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
We should pray about everything.
Prayer shouldn’t just be our way of requesting things from God. We should view prayer as a way of having a conversation with a God who cares for us and listens to us, not just as a way to get things that we want. Jeremiah 29:12 (ESV) says, “Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you.”
What are ways God can answer my prayers
If you’ve been praying for something for a long time and haven’t seen a direct response from God, you might believe that He’s not listening to you. God always hears our prayers; He just might not answer as we desire. Here are three ways that God might choose to answer our prayers:
He says yes.
There’s no guarantee that God will say yes to our prayers, and there’s no specific prayer that we can pray in order to make Him say yes. However, if our values and requests align with God’s will for our life, He may say yes to our prayers.
Nothing happens without God allowing it to happen — if you’ve been praying for something for a long time and your prayer is answered, God allowed it to happen.
He says no.
It can be so difficult for us to hear God say no to our prayers over and over again. However, God isn’t obligated to say yes to all of our prayers or requests, even if we ask in faith. Sometimes, God says no to our prayers because He has a different path for our life. This can be especially difficult when the “no” brings pain and sorrow. We may never understand why God says “no” to certain prayers — even the most sincere, faithful prayer — but we can trust that God is good, and that He can work all things for good for those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). We can also trust that God will meet us in our deepest moments of heartache and questioning in a way that will carry us through what we ever thought we were capable of.
Isaiah 55:8 (ESV) says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.” God knows what is best for us — we do not. His ways are always right, even when we struggle to see it.
He asks us to wait.
Sometimes, God doesn’t say yes or no—at least, not immediately. Instead, He asks us to be patient and to trust in Him until the time is right for Him to answer our prayers.
In Psalm 109:4, we find David pleading to God for deliverance from his foes. He states that despite the fact that God has not intervened in his circumstances, he gives himself over to prayer. Constant prayer in the waiting. In fact, the Hebrew version of this verse, ואני תפילה, literally translates to say, “I am prayer.” David is so consumed in prayer with God that it has become his only identity — his only defining characteristic. He is prayer, in the waiting.
Let this be our norm as we wait for God to answer the longings of our heart.
Centerpoint Church is ready to walk with you on your faith journey
At Centerpoint, our community believes in purpose and passion, and we would love to walk with you on your journey in finding yours. You can also find out what our community’s purpose and passion are all about by checking out some of the past sermons we’ve posted on our website.
Do you want to grow in your faith, or are you simply curious about who this Jesus guy is? You’re not alone. We encourage you to listen to our podcast series online and welcome you to come to one of our Sunday morning services in Valrico, Florida.