It seems to be heart wrenching to pray about matters of life that concern us greatly so that we cast our cares upon God because He cares for us, only to receive what we perceive as a deaf ear, or God turning from us. Stop! If you are going down that trail or have been there and are still a bit miffed because you haven’t received an answer, consider what all may be happening.
First, look at your life. Are you harboring sin in your life? Unlike the admonishments from Job’s friends that all of his trouble was caused by his sin, this is the reality check to look and see if you are playing games in serving God. Many Christians do a great job on Sunday morning, unless there is something else they want to do. Others are faithful on Sunday and live like the world the rest of the week. We are to judge ourselves by God’s word, not by the conduct of others. Consider then what God has to say, when you aren’t getting an answer:
Isaiah 59:1–2 (ESV) — 1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
Psalm 66:18 (ESV) — 18 If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
Notice it’s sin that causes a separation in fellowship and broken fellowship with God ruins the line of communication. That broken fellowship, by God’s grace, can be restored by coming clean with God.
1 John 1:7–10 (ESV) — 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Don’t try to hide your sin. Come clean with God, confess and repent, seek Him to restore the fellowship. You still may not receive what you are asking, but when you are in fellowship with Him you are more apt to understand that He has a reason for withholding and more often than not it’s because He has something better for you.
Secondly, remember God’s ways are not our ways. In other words, He has a plan and the closer we live in fellowship with Him, the more His plan becomes our desire and changes the way we pray. When we aren’t getting an answer, then we need to look at the possibility that God has a different plan for us. His plan is perfect so it’s worth being on the same page.
Isaiah 55:8–9 (ESV) — 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Deuteronomy 32:4 (ESV) — 4 “The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.
Psalm 37:4 (ESV) — 4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
1 John 5:14–15 (ESV) — 14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
The bottom line is that we need the mind of God as we pray, which happens as we draw near to Him through the means of grace such as the word, prayer, worship, etc. The closer we are to Him, the more we gain the mind of Christ and know that the Holy Spirit helps us to pray according to the will of God and many times what appears to be a “no” or that God isn’t listening is the inner working of the Holy Spirit moving us closer having the mind of Christ so that our desires are what God desires.
Romans 8:26 (ESV) — 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
1 Corinthians 2:16 (ESV) — 16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
One further word about feeling like God has turned away. We would never learn to lament and the value of lamenting if we didn’t experience trouble. It is through lamenting that we experience the comfort from God as described in Psalm 77 as the psalmist addresses God, lays out his complaint, makes his requests (although this lament is a request in itself for a restoration of God’s presence), and declares dependency upon the faithfulness of God.
Psalm 77:1 (ESV) — 1 I cry aloud to God, aloud to God, and he will hear me.
Psalm 77:3 (ESV) — 3 When I remember God, I moan; when I meditate, my spirit faints. Selah
Psalm 77:6–8 (ESV) — 6 I said, “Let me remember my song in the night; let me meditate in my heart.” Then my spirit made a diligent search: 7 “Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? 8 Has his steadfast love forever ceased? Are his promises at an end for all time?
Psalm 77:10–12 (ESV) — 10 Then I said, “I will appeal to this, to the years of the right hand of the Most High.” 11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old. 12 I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds.
Check out Psalm 77 and the case for learning to lament as you also consider the need to look at ourselves through the lens of the Word of God, along with recognizing God having a higher agenda than we do, all of which can be reasons for feeling like He has turned away from our cry to Him.
Godspeed,
Bob Brubaker, Pastor
Christ Community Presbyterian Church
Clearwater, FL
Check out our podcast, the PowerBreak podcast, which can be found wherever you download podcasts or on our website: www.bobbrubaker.com
