unanswered prayer

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

– James 4:3 

As a child, I can recall wishing and praying so hard for a certain toy, and being so disappointed when I did not get it.

As a teenager and young adult, I prayed many times for a certain guy to be in my life “forever”, and it never happened.

It has taken me many years to understand that those things I wanted so badly were wrong for me.

OK, so really, what was wrong about a little girl wanting a doll house?

I can’t answer that, but I know this now – I did not get that doll house not because I didn’t deserve it, or because I was a terrible child, but because everything happens in God’s timing, and that doll house – it was not in His plan.

Looking back, I am so thankful for the unanswered prayers of “forever love” I prayed as a teen, because I have been given a much better gift in my wonderful husband, and I am glad God led me to wait for him.

Those others? They could have destroyed me, but God knew what He was doing, and He loved me enough to protect me.

Recently I have been able to witness several answered prayers, and I honestly cried with those recipients of the answered prayer because the answers were a long time coming.

But so worth the wait.

So next time you are angry, upset or frustrated about an unanswered prayer, file it away in your memory, because I just bet you’ll understand why someday.

Have a blessed day!