He Answers Prayers

 

Several years ago, I applied for and was offered a position. It was my dream job, the thing that I had always wanted to do. Shortly before I was to start, the offer was withdrawn. I was both shocked and heartbroken. It seemed like God was giving me my heart’s desire, only to have it taken away in an instant. I had already quit my previous job so continuing with that was not an option. I went to work at an inner-city clinic, a job which was difficult but fulfilling. This led to my finding a position with a Christian clinic providing care to people who had nowhere else to go for care, where I worked until I retired. This turned out to be my “dream job” despite the difficulties and obstacles in trying to provide medical care in recent years.

 

Jesus told us that we don’t need to say a lot of words when we pray because “…your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Mt 6:8). He sometimes answers our prayers in ways that don’t seem right to us at first, only to find out that He knew what we really needed and was giving us more than we could have hoped for. It seems to me, and this is just my own personal thought and not a theological statement, that God sometimes works in little ways to build up our faith to prepare us for bigger things to come. Once we have experienced the love and providence of God, we are better able to trust Him when we are faced with a major decision or crisis. There are some problems, such as when a loved one suffers or dies, for which there are no easy answers. When we pray, there is no resolution, only an answer that God will be with us. He tells us, “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Cor 12:9).

 

Keep in your memory all the ways God has answered your prayers, especially those times when He went beyond what you expected or hoped for.  Let it be a help for you when His answer is not yet in view.

 

“We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28).