Denny answers:
God may answer your prayers with “Yes” or “No,” but sometimes He says, “Wait.”
Suppose you ask your parents if they will let you start taking piano lessons. Instead of giving a yes or no answer right away, they say, “Maybe; we’ll see. You’ll have to wait.”
Your parents don’t ask you to wait because they are mean. Maybe they want to wait until you are more responsible to practice every day. They don’t answer you right away for a good reason.
God also might not answer prayer right away. He always has a good reason.
One reason God may not answer your prayer right away is because you need to turn from a sin in your life. (See Bible Truth below.)
Often, God says, “Wait,” because He has a better plan. God wants to make your faith stronger as you keep believing Him, even when you do not see His answer.
God is all-powerful, so He can answer “Yes” to any prayer that is in His plan for you. He is also all-good, so He'll answer with what is best for you.
Since God knows what is best for you, ask for things in God's will (what He wants). You can know what God wants by reading the Bible and asking Him to give you wisdom (James 1:5). Ask God for the strength to follow and obey Jesus.
If God doesn't answer your prayer right away, don't get discouraged. God may just be saying, “Wait.” Keep praying for God's will to be done. Waiting helps you trust God because He knows the best time and best way to answer.
Bible Truth
- “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Psalm 66:18). “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24).
- “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12).
- “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him” (1 John 5:14-15).
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