When I pray, I ask God to open my eyes to His goodness and I ask Him to make is so my ears can hear His truth. 

Our God is the God of the impossible.  So, I want to see the mountains move.  When I ask, I want those waters to part! I want to hear Him speak directly to me, loud and clear. 

So, I pray.  And, I wait. And, I pray again and wait some more.

But when my prayer is not being answered, I wonder, does He hear me? 

Why don’t I see anything happening? 

Why can’t I hear Him?

Why is He holding out on me?

We live in a world of such instant gratification that when I ask God for something, I want to believe He is ready to answer me….right now!  Like He’s at the fast food drive-thru with that headset on….I’ll take a cheeseburger with everything but onion, a large serving of Grace, and super-size this request!

And, if I’d told to pull up and wait for my order, I may not always be happy, but I’ll do it because I know I’ll be getting what I want SOON! 

So, if you don’t answer my prayer, God, right now, I’ll say ok as long as I don’t have to wait TOO LONG!

But what happens when I’m waiting and waiting, and my order is not coming up.  I see other people’s orders being delivered, and while I am happy for them, I’m screaming, “Where is what I asked for?”

And, as if the waiting is not hard enough, then Satan jumps in line and entices me with an extra serving of lies.  When Jesus is promising truth in my faith, Satan wants to bring the fear, the hopelessness, the bitterness, and the hatred.  And, if I want it now, I can get Satan’s brown paper bag delivery of despair in that fast food lane without the wait. 

It’s easy to get discouraged.  It’s easy to believe that while He’s busy filling all the other prayer requests that I don’t seem as important or my request wasn’t heard. In my heart I know that’s not true, but my understanding can sometimes fail me because it is not equal to His. 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

So, I have to be careful in the waiting.  I have to keep my eyes on Jesus….always.  My faith can become greater as I wait because I know in my weakness, He is strong.  He hears me and His ways are always much better than what I am expecting. I have to reject Satan and open my eyes, my ears, my heart to Jesus and wait for His goodness.

Then if I stop stressing over what is not happening during the wait and actually pay attention to what IS happening, this is what I notice.

I can see His goodness in big ways during the little events of the day.

The person who pays for my Starbucks on my way to a long day of work.

The way the sun breaks through the clouds on a cool, crisp autumn day.

My daughters’ conversations with each other that prove they do love each other.

A random text saying, “Have a great day!”

Running into a friend who brings sweet memories to mind.

The student who says, “I feel like I learn something new every day in your class.”

The laughter with coworkers after a long day of craziness.

And, if I can shut out all the noise of the world, I can hear the whispers of God’s promises all around me.

The powerful lyrics of a praise song encouraging me. 

The compelling words in scripture shared by a sister in Christ reassuring me.

The conversations of treasured Godly influences in my life inspiring me.

So even if my prayer is not answered in my time or by my methods, I can rest assured that He is good.  He will bless me in His ways, not necessarily mine. He is and will always be right here with me.  He is always making a way.  In the waiting and the wanting. My faith tells me this.

I pray that my eyes are always opened to His goodness, the unmistakable miracles as well the little happenings every day.

I pray that my ears can always hear to His voice, the obvious resonances as well as the soft murmurs whispering His truths to me.

I pray that my heart is always ready to receive His promises, even when I don’t understand, so I can not only know His love for me, but rejoice in it.

….And, I pray that I’m always grateful for that large order of Grace, which is always delivered!

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love.” Ephesians 3:16-17 (NIV)