AWARENESS OF THE ANSWER

I spent the greater part of last week on the couch after having all four of my wisdom teeth removed. When I thought it was bad enough, I then experienced a complication that caused some of the most excruciating pain of my life. I remember specifically on New Years Eve, laying in misery on the couch with a throbbing head for several hours without any relief. There seemed to be nothing that would break the pain. My prescribed painkillers couldn’t touch it, and we tried everything else we could think of: heat, ice, and even Orajel to try and numb the pain. After having a near mental breakdown due to hours of constant, extreme pain, I found the emergency number from the doctor’s office and gave it a call. I began to ask the doctor his opinion on my situation. After hearing no words of hope from the doctor, I felt hopeless. He had told me that there was nothing I could do except try to be comfortable until the wound had healed.

I then walked downstairs and asked my family to breathe a prayer over me. In tears and complete desperation we asked God to break the pain because we had no other options. Immediately I felt a relief from the pain that had left me in bed for the past few days, and was able to fall asleep for the remainder of the night. The next morning I began to think about how God wants us to approach him in desperation and hopeless situations. At that moment in my life I had no other hope, and I had exhausted all other options. I was desperate, not even the doctor had any answers for me. What took the pain away? I truly believe it was my faith that Jesus could handle the circumstance. We surrendered the situation to him in complete desperation.

Lets look at Mark 5:
25And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." 29Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
30At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?"
31"You see the people crowding against you," his disciples answered, "and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' "
32But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

In this story we see the woman who had exhausted all other options. At that moment, in her desperation she touched Jesus and was healed. I truly believe that when we cry out to Jesus in our desperation, our prayers WILL be answered. But, what about all the desperate people who have prayed and their petitions were not met??

This is probably one of the stickiest questions that people have about prayer, and I don’t know that I have it figured out, but let me tell you what I do know. I do know that we should always pray the will of the Father (if you question that, check out where Jesus taught his disciples to pray). Far be it for us, the created, to question the will and plans of the creator.  This does not mean that my previous statement about coming to God in desperation and receiving an answer is not true, it is only giving it context. I still believe that when we pray, our prayers will be answered, but I don't think we always know or like the answer that is given. What if you are praying for healing for your friend who is suffering of cancer, and that person never finds healing and passes away? Does that mean that God did not hear your prayer, or that God is no longer in control? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!  We simply cannot always fully understand the will of God. However, because He is sovereign, we can have unwavering faith that he hears and answers our prayers, even if it is in a way we do not understand, were not expecting, or do not like. No prayer ever goes unanswered, but many times the answer goes unnoticed.

I remember being in desperate need of money at one point in my life. In complete desperation I asked God to provide while I was driving home from work, and exactly three minutes later I received a phone call about a temporary job. This job would provide for the need that I had, plus some. Would I have rather had the infamous, surprise check in the mail? Probably. But in that moment, I had to be aware of the movement of God in answering my prayer or I would have missed His provision.

I challenge you to open your eyes to find the answers to your unanswered prayer, even if they come in a way you do not expect or necessarily like.

Comments

[Gabriel Narváez]

Hi Darrel, this is a subject that people don't know how to talk about it. Sometimes is difficult to understand God's plans for our lives and He has plans for us!!! Thanks a lot and God Bless You.

[Spencer]

Hey, buddy. Read your article and you are right to say that it is a "sticky" question regarding those who have prayed and have yet to find a "solution;" specifically, in my own frame of mind, those who do not find healing which sometimes leads to the experience of "death." I believe God hears the prayers of the world but I struggle with making sense of situations where tragedy strikes, e.g., the painful death of a child, natural disaster, plane crash, etc. For example, how did God answer the prayers of the individuals on American Airlines Flight 11 on 9/11 who were no doubt praying for peace and diversion. Does God "answer" all prayers? I wonder if we need to define the word, answer, a little more openly as I think you are hinting towards in your article.

Maybe answering should be defined as involvement. God hears the prayers of those who are searching and/or suffering and answers by reminding the world that the presence of God is actively experiencing that particular situation at the core of that particular community. I think there is solace found in situations where there is community. I watched the movie "The Body in the Striped Pajamas" tonight and am reminded of the final scene in the movie. The 8 year old boy Bruce has broken into the concentration camp to help his friend Schmull find his father. They look all over the camp and find themselves back in the sleeping quarters without any promise. The guards rush into the barracks and force the entire group out of the hut and over into the gas chamber, beating and screaming at them the entire way. The next scene they are in the chamber naked and terrified...not knowing what is happening but the environment is shouting something tragic. Bruce naked standing next to Schmull, grabs his hand for comfort in the midst of this horrific scene. Maybe this is how God answers our prayers in the face of suffering...our hands are held and we do not find ourselves alone. rather, we are comforted in the presence of God and are able to journey through suffering at all costs. Maybe this is how God "answers" prayers that seem to go unanswered. God is speaking...responding to our fears by coming to us in the midst of pain and wiping the tears from our faces. So maybe in this process we find renewal; new life. A type of renewal that is beyond faith and simply comes from the heart of God pouring out into the world.

I don't know. it's just how i would define "answer."

much love, buddy. keep writing!