I’ve seen sudden answers to prayer. I’ve also seen answers arrive months or years later. Those who promote either view as the norm place faith at the center of it all. How can they both be right?
Answered prayer: Two extremes
Some people in the Bible prayed and didn’t even have to wait for overnight express. Elijah, Elisha, Jesus, Peter, and Paul most usually got instant results.
Others in the Bible didn’t. Jesus left His friend Lazarus in the grave for three days while Mary and Martha prayed otherwise. Daniel once sought God for three weeks (Daniel 10:2). Others expected divine intervention for longer periods. Samuel anointed David to be Israel’s next king, but first, he lived on the run for twenty years. God promised Abraham a son twenty-five years before Isaac’s birth.
How long Oh, Lord?
If you’ve ever asked God why a prayer hasn’t been answered yet, you aren’t alone.
David did. “How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?” (Psalm 13:1, NKVJ). So did Habakkuk. “How long, O Lord, must I call for help?… I cry, but you do not come to save” (Habakkuk 1:2, NLT).
Jesus said in Mark 11:24 that when His followers pray according to His will, He’ll answer. He didn’t promise, “You’ll see the results soon as you say, ‘Amen’.”
Why we can’t just receive it
Canadian pastor, Mark Buchanan, is impressed with how new houses being built seem to quickly rise to completion. He admits, “I want prayer to work that way, like a house going up. I want it to work quickly, tangibly, noticeably.”
Why doesn’t it always? Why are answers to prayers sometimes more like a long, slow construction project?
Does the prayer involve other people? God doesn’t force others to comply with our requests. A prayer for someone to become a Christian hinges on their willingness to admit their sinfulness and repent. Prayers for some family situations may call for more than one person to make the right decision. Here’s an important yet frustrating reality: while we’re praying with faith in God’s ability, those we’re praying for are exercising the free will God gave them.
Faith Matters
Trusting God for an immediate answer takes faith. So does trusting God week after week while waiting. It’s not about accruing more faith. Jesus said your faith needs to be no larger than a tiny mustard seed (Matthew 17:20), not a big watermelon seed. Lack of instant results doesn’t mean lack of faith.
What about things you’ve prayed for in a Sunday morning service when your faith felt super charged? Did the answer come that day? According to former Senate Chaplain Peter Marshall, “He does not answer every prayer on Sunday afternoon. You may have to wait until Friday. But wait. God is never in a hurry.”
Jesus’ brother James said, “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results” (James 5:16b, NLT). The requirement: a sincere, heartfelt prayer. God’s answer to your earnest prayer might be today, but it could be tomorrow or next month. That doesn’t mean He didn’t accept your prayer or that He isn’t attending to it.
What about Abraham’s 25-year wait? The author of Hebrews mentions the patriarch’s ceaseless confidence in God. “And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise” (Hebrews 6:15, NKJV). Until the promise came, Abraham’s faith in God’s provision remained high. He prayed. He waited. God provided.
The Road Ahead:
- Sometimes answers to prayer are as instant as lightning lighting up the sky. At other times, they’re more like the gradual dawning of the sun. In the Bible, you’ll find no difference in how the prayers were prayed. But consider how those who had to wait passed the time while waiting.
- The answer to your prayer may be impending, but not immediate. It might come to pass this year, but not this month. You may see it fulfilled this week, but not today. Yet, God’s timing is impeccable. Keep anticipating, keep expecting, keep trusting God to deliver His answer. It will come in what He sees is the perfect hour, which could be today.
Further Fuel: Psalm 27:14; Colossians 1:11.
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