Unanswered Prayers

No, this isn’t a reference to the Garth Brooks song from years back but rather a reflection on what I thought was yet another very insightful devotional thought from Dr. Dale Meyer in his Meyer Minute yesterday. It read:

Keep in mind that prayer gatherings are being held today in Washington.

They call it the “miracle on the Hudson” but what about other families who  go no miracle and lost a loved one in another crash?  What about the people  who prayed for a miracle as they or a loved one faced a terrible disease but  weren’t healed, didn’t realize their hope, died.  What happened to their  prayers?  People who don’t get their desired miracle can easily conclude  that God is against them.  It’s like saying, “There but for the grace of God  go I.”  That pious platitude suggests God gives grace to some but not  others.

Jesus healed many people but at the same time did not heal others.  They  didn’t get the “grace” they desired.  Their prayers were not granted.  The  Gospel accounts tell us that Jesus came to announce a deeper care and cure  for people than just a medical supercenter or a fix for our immediate  problems.  Even if you get your miracle, ours remains a broken and sinful  world and Jesus’ message of repentance for sin and trust in the Father,  trust sometimes against the evidence, is about God’s grace for the greatest  rescue of all, our eternal rescue.

What does that say about the way we go about prayer, for ourselves, for  America?

I’ve broached this topic on this blog before but this really brought it to the forefront for me again. When it comes to our understanding of prayer, there is a fine balance. On the one hand, we heed Jesus’ words of promise that if we seek, we shall find; if we ask, it will be given; knock, and the door will be answered. (cf. Luke 11:1-13) That is to say, we ask with full confidence that God hears our prayers and will answer them according to our needs (note: not wants or desires, necessarily) and, more importantly, His will. On the other hand, we see instances where people prayed for something and did not receive it (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 – the thorn in the flesh). In Paul’s instance I’ve referenced – the thorn in the flesh – he didn’t get what he wanted not because he didn’t pray hard enough or because he didn’t have enough faith. Rather, I believe he didn’t get what he was asking for – well, the answer is right there – because God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

For those who have the idea that as Chrisitans our worldly lives (our physical lives, if you will) are supposed to somehow have less trouble or be “better” in this life than those of non-Christians – well, you need a serious wake up call. Even Jesus himself says “in this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33). As Christians, we’ll experience the same problems and effects of a sinful, fallen world as everyone else. In fact, because of our proclamation of Jesus Christ crucified and risen for the forgiveness of sins is not a popular or politically correct message, we can even at times expect an extra measure of “suffering” for our faith. The point being that if we try to gauge our relationship with God, our faith, God’s love for us, etc. by how our physical lives are going – we’re always going to be let down. But that’s why we have the hope and comfort in the message of Christ. The message that regardless of how our lives go now – regardless of the pains, struggles, suffering we suffer here and now – we have the promise that right now our sins have been for given and we have the promise of eternal life – a time when all the “bad stuff” will come to an end and we’ll experience joy that is beyond compare (cf. Revelation 21). Because Jesus Christ gave his life and shed his blood on the cross for you and me and because He rose again from the dead three days later, we have the assurance that a time will come when all we’ll experience is God’s grace in Christ and that’s something that gives us what St. Paul describes as a peace which transcends all understanding. May that peace in Christ give you hope and comfort in your daily lives. God bless you and thanks for stopping by my blog. It’s good to be back at it again!

~ by The Rev Russ on January 22, 2009.