3 Hopes to Cling to While Waiting on God to Answer Prayer
By Cindi McMenamin
“You will make known to me the way of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” - Psalm 16:11
Do you know what it’s like to wonder if God is really listening to your prayers anymore? Sometimes, it’s difficult to believe He really loves us when He doesn’t do what we ask.
I’ve long been an advocate of asking God for the big things. “We ask big when our faith is big,” I’ve often said. So recently, I applied my own advice when it came to a 5-centimeter mass that was growing on my right thyroid lobe. After it was downgraded from “high-risk category” to “atypical but still a concern,” I decided it was time to back up my words with action.
My surgeon said I could have the mass surgically removed, but it would possibly irreversibly affect my voice. Because I had five upcoming speaking engagements at the time—and am still planning on speaking for the next several years –I decided that was a risk I didn’t want to take. I was determined to trust God to shrink it or completely eliminate it. How could I say I believe God is the Great Physician if I wasn’t willing to believe it for myself?
“Lord, remove this mass,” I prayed. “I know You can do this, and I’ll give You all the praise.”
I declined the surgery so I could wait on God to heal me. My doctor assured me that kind of mass is slow-growing, and I could monitor it every six months. If it continued to grow over several years, I could opt for surgery then. I felt peace about giving God a chance to heal me, and I truly believed He could.
After just three months, another ultrasound showed the growth wasn’t gone. It hadn’t even shrunk, as I’d been praying. Instead, it grew in all directions! I was so discouraged.
Did I hear You right, God? Didn’t You give me such peace about waiting on You to heal me instead of rushing into a surgery?
My discouragement lasted a few minutes until that sweet, silent voice of God penetrated my heart: Now you know what it’s like to trust Me even when I don’t do what you ask.
What love my Savior has for me! God knew I was writing a book to encourage women to trust Him even when He doesn’t appear to be doing what they think is best. And now I had to practice that advice and continue to trust His goodness and love in the unknown. My loving Heavenly Father didn’t want me writing from a place of theory, but from genuine life experience.
At the recommendation of several doctors, I had the mass surgically removed, and thankfully came through it without impact to my voice. I know today that God is still good even when we don’t know why He doesn’t answer in the way we want. In those three more months that I waited for what the doctor said would be an “immediate surgery,” I experienced precious phone calls with my aging Dad, beautiful expressions of love and support from other believers, and I sensed God’s presence more than I ever have in my life. It’s almost as if God was whispering, at times, I’ll keep you here waiting just a little bit longer because you and I have never been closer.
Intersecting Life & Faith:
If you're in the frustrating phase of asking God for something and He doesn’t appear to be listening or delivering, I encourage you to place your hope in these three things:
- Hope in God's Word—In Psalm 119:81, the psalmist sang: “My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word.” Even if it doesn’t seem like God hears, trust His Word, He cannot contradict it.
- Hope in God's Character—God also cannot contradict Himself. So when we read in Romans 8:28 that God causes all things to work for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose, He will do just that. The more you get to know God, the more you will trust Him. The more you trust Him, the less you will doubt, fear, or give up.
- Hope in God’s Timing—God knows exactly when you are ready to receive the desire of your heart, and He will not act a moment too soon or a moment too late when it comes to doing what is eternally best for you. When you are in the long haul of waiting, realize your situation may not be so much about what you’re asking for, but more about your relationship with Him.
Trust your Savior with what you don’t know, and rest in the fact that He still loves you. He will often do whatever it takes for you to sense His presence and draw the two of you closer.
Further Reading:
Psalm 62
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/franckreporter
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