Good afternoon! I hope you’re having a great day! Today on the show I talked about the 5 different answers that God has to your prayers.
We first must establish that ‘no’ is an answer to prayer, and there are two answers to prayer that God gives us that actually involve the answer of ‘no’.
1. “Yes. Immediately”.
Sometimes what we pray is exactly in line with God’s will, as well as his timing, and His answer will arrive on the spot. We also need to realize that God is answering our prayers before we even pray the prayer. He says that ‘before they call, I answer.” God is simply not bound by time. He may start answering prayers ten years before you pray it/ He is, now, preparing things for you through the prayers you have yet to pray.
2. “Yes, in due time.”
We need to understand that a delay is not a denial. This answer is basically a “yes, but you’re not ready for it yet.” God is working behind the scenes in your life, waiting for a more perfect moment to unveil His amazing ‘yes’. If it is a “yes, but not now’ answer, what He is giving us is the faith and patience to wait for the right time to arrive.
3. “Yes, so you’ll learn from it.”
Sometimes God gives us what we want because He knows that it will teach us a lesson. We’re much better off trusting God to give us what we need, when we need it, and when we’re ready for it. There are moments when, if God gave us what we asked for, we would one day regret it, and we would thank Him for saying ‘no’. We need to pray freely using the Luke method (or the Hillary Scott method) by saying ‘not my will be done, but yours’, which is sometimes the hardest thing to pray in tough situations.
Now we enter into the realm of the tough answers. No.
This #4 is a toughy to hear…
4. “No, because your heart isn’t right”
Sometimes a no isn’t a ‘wait’, sometimes it’s us asking and not receiving because we are asking with the wrong motives, so that we may spend it on our pleasures. This is insanely hard to hear, but it is very good to have our hearts aligned with God, and having our requests, again, focused not on our will, but His. God isn’t saying no forever, but He realizes that we are not in a position to appreciate the gift or to handle it well. Besides, if it’s not God’s will, do we really want it anyway?
5. “No. I’ve got a better plan.”
Obviously, God knows what is best for his children, and we know that He has a plan for us, it tells us that in Jeremiah 29:11. Sometimes we ask too small, confined by our own limits and knowledge, not thinking outside of what we’ve seen and experienced.
We pray for a handful when God wants to give us a houseful.
WE ARE ALLOWED TO PRAY BIG PRAYERS! Never be afraid to pray boldly and for big things. When we ask for big things, we need to realize that God may just choose to amaze us even further. That’s why praying ‘Lord, will you do immeasurably more than I could ever ask or imagine in this situation?” because we know that He is a powerful God that can do just that, which it tells us in Ephesians 3. One of my favorite verses.
Here’s the prayer for today…
“Father, my default has been to think You probably weren’t listening, and even if you were, You’d probably say no. I bow before you today – more convinced than ever that I am in wise, loving, caring, powerful hands. Convinced that I can trust you. Convinced that every ‘no’ is some way to an even better ‘yes’. You said You withhold no good thing from those who love You. Thank You for letting me ask, and thank you for letting me know that Your desire is truly for my ultimate good. May I trust You even more and pray with even greater faith knowing You want to be glorified through my answered prayers.
In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Thanks as always for listening! Pray boldly.
– Lilly
Driving Notes 