Prayer: Asking and Receiving

Someone asks, "Why does God not answer my prayers?"

For the next few days if you will allow me, I want to offer some suggestions

as to why God often does not answer our prayers.

First of all, God cannot answer a prayer never spoken or never offered up.

We may have a desire, a burden, a wish, a longing for something that is a

very legitimate concern.  However, we never speak it to God in a prayer.

That need may materialize even though we never verbalized it to God.  But,

truthfully He answered the prayer of someone else who had the same burden.

God answered the other person's prayer, but not the prayer you never

bothered to pray.

James wrote in James 4:2 very plainly, "Ye have not because ye ask not."

I have heard well-meaning older Christians almost bragging that they never

asked God to help them with their problems.  God had bigger needs to take

care of they reasoned.  Consequently, they missed the blessing of answered

prayer because God does not answer the prayers we never offer.

Remember, if you want God to answer your prayers, the first thing you must

do is pray.