Remember when computers took time to boot up? When you had to dial up and wait for a connection? Better yet, remember when getting a busy signal on the phone meant you had to wait and call again later? No voice mail or answering machines back then.
Our push-button, instant gratification culture has destroyed our patience. Whether it’s long lines at the grocery store or the drive thru, or that poky driver in the car ahead of us, we want to hurry up, get it done. Now!
That happens with prayer, too. I admit I sometimes treat God like a vending machine. If I spend the right amount of energy and press the right buttons, I get the answer to my prayer. But if nothing shows up, I might press the refund button a few times, pound the side, maybe even give it a final kick before walking away in frustration.
But God is not a vending machine, and sometimes the answers to our prayers take much longer than we’d like. In fact, we may never see the answer to some prayers. In the Bible, Jesus tells us to keep seeking, keep asking, keep praying. But how do we battle the discouragement and weariness when time passes and still we see no answer? How do we continue to trust God when it seems He’s left the building?
During those times, I remind myself of when I was a little girl in Wisconsin. I really wanted a pair of cowboy boots, but when I asked my parents, they said, “We’ll see.” It took years for me to figure out that was their gentle way of saying no. Time after shoe-shopping time, when I didn’t get the cowboy boots I dearly longed for, did I quit trusting my parents? Did I get angry and ignore them, maybe pretend they didn’t exist?
Of course not!
Why?
Because I knew my parents loved me. Our relationship was built on so many other things than a request for cowboy boots. They’d proven they could be trusted to provide essentials like food and clothing and shelter and love. I learned that they saw a bigger picture than I did, and maybe those boots weren’t as important as I thought they were.
When you receive a We’ll see from God—when you wait, and wait, and wait, but the answer never seems to come—draw nearer to God rather than walking away in discouragement and doubt. Dig deeper into your relationship with Him, remembering all the other times He has answered prayers and provided what you need. Reassure yourself of His love and care, building trust by remembering the times He’s been faithful, and recognize that He sees the end from the beginning.
Rather than treating God like a vending machine and walking away in disgust, use unanswered prayer as a call to deeper fellowship, a closer relationship with your Daddy God who loves you with unfailing love.
Former “Teacher of the Year” Elaine Sutterfeld has lived in disgrace ever since her student, Jenny, disappeared from a field trip and was never found. Years later, Elaine spots Jenny’s distinctive pendant hanging from the neck of another young girl and determines to uncover the truth. But someone is desperate to keep the truth buried, desperate enough to kill. And when the threats mount, Elaine must decide whether to play it safe, or avenge Jenny’s death even if it kills her.
The suspense in this warm-hearted novel by Mary “M L” Hamilton won’t make you lock your doors, but it will keep you turning pages.
Monsters under the bed never bothered Mary “M L” Hamilton. What scared her was the man hiding in her closet. She never figured out who he was or how he fit into her jam-packed closet, but since then she’s imagined all sorts of other scary situations to write about. This is her first adult mystery/suspense novel.
When she’s not conjuring up scary situations, Mary loves to read, knit, take walks with her dog and enjoy the beauty of nature. You can find out more about her at www.maryhamiltonbooks.com.