Why Prayer Does Not Work

Millions of prayers go up every day. Some prayers are sent to an unknown god; others are offered to our personal Savior. We pray for all sorts of details that we deem very important and necessary for our life.

A Newsweek poll, titled "Is God Listening?” stated that if you count up the number of prayers that were answered exactly like the person who said them wanted them answered, it would only tally to around 15% of answered prayers. It also said that 13% declared they lost their faith because of God’s failure to answer their prayer.

These people insist that prayer does not work. They act like prayer is some magic formula to get what they want. They perceive God as a genie in a bottle who is bound to grant their wishes. They get angry and pout when God does not interfere in the affairs of mankind. They blame God for what sinful human choices caused.

Some people see God as an impersonal deity who is too busy to consider our needs. Others have the misconception that some prayers are not important enough to bother God with. Then some people feel that their life is too immoral and God no longer cares about them. At times, a prayer is even offered as a last resort, because the person tried everything else first and it failed.

So, what is prayer and how does it work? Prayer is an intimate dialogue with our eternal Father. It involves us sharing our needs and then praising God for the results. It also includes us listening to His response to us. Sometimes we do not hear the answer to our prayer; because we quickly send it heavenward, and then rush right off without taking the time to listen to God’s answer. At other times we never stop talking long enough to hear His answer.

There are many other reasons we do not get answers to our prayers. We may have sin, which is blocking God from hearing them (Psalm 66:18). When we pray selfishly, rather than according to God’s will, He cannot answer (James 4:3). If we have unforgiveness in our heart, God requires that we settle these issues first (Matthew 5: 23-24). Doubt will block an answered prayer (James 1: 6-7; 2 Corinthians 10:4). If we ignore the needs of others, God cannot provide our needs (Proverbs 21:13). If we rob God by withholding our tithe, He cannot bless us, as He wants to (Malachi 3: 8-12). Our faulty motives will also hinder the answers to our prayers (Proverbs 16:2).

Satan often blinds us to the fact that God really is answering our prayers. The devil will not allow us to see the answers, because he does not want us to give God any glory. He wants to hinder our faith from growing. He would rather that we get angry with God, so our heart gets cold against Him and we fall away from serving Him. This way, Satan has us right where he wants us…in the palm of his evil hand.

God actually wants us to love Him more than we want the answer for our prayer. He wants us to love Him even if He does not give us what we want. Do you love God more than you love what you prayed for?

God answers our prayers more often than we think. God often says “No”, because what we want will be harmful for us in the big scheme of life. He says “Wait” when He is working in the situation, and it will take more time for the other parties involved to be willing to cooperate with His plan. Also, He wants our faith to grow, so He will make us wait for a while to give us time to learn to trust Him.

God delights in delivering us out of our troubles and making us a testimony for the world to see...just like the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace. Jesus met them in the incinerator and kept them safe (Daniel 3: 25). God did not answer Mary and Martha’s prayer to heal their brother, but allowed Lazarus to die. Jesus later told them, it was for God’s glory, and He raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:14). When our loved one dies, it means that God healed them for eternity, instead of only for this lifetime on earth.

Sometimes, God just wants us to persevere in prayer. In Luke 18:5-8, He tells a parable about a persistent widow. In it He states, “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not to lose heart.”  When you pray, do you get discouraged? Jesus teaches us the importance of persisting in prayer. It is not a lack of faith to pray for something more than once; that is persistence.

With every issue you experienced since dedicating your life to God, He really has resolved them one by one, even if you are not aware of it. You may be having continual trials, but that is because Satan is trying to get you to give up and to curse God (Job 2:9). If you look at these circumstances more closely, God is actually answering every one of your prayers.

In this world, we will have tribulation, but be of good cheer because Jesus already overcame these trials for us (John 16:32-33). God will use our trials to build His character in us and to further His Kingdom in the earth (Psalm 34:7,17,19). We can believe that God will deliver us out of all of our troubles (Psalm 5:15), because He promised that He would ~ not in our timing, but in His own.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, when doubts fill my mind, Your comfort gives me renewed hope and cheer (Psalm 94:19). When I go through deep difficulties, You will not let me drown. When life gets overwhelming, You are right there with me. When I walk through the fire of oppression, You will not allow me to be totally consumed (Isaiah 43:2). Help me to trust in You no matter what this sinful world brings my way.

Thought for the Day:
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. - Psalm 34:18