With over seven billion people in the world, most would argue that God doesn’t have the time or desire to listen to the heart cries of every individual. However, I would argue the opposite.
Yes, God does have a lot of children to look after, that is for sure. But we are talking about the same God that breathes out stars! Certainly nothing is too much for Him to handle, not even responding to the prayers of every single one of His kids.
Over the past six weeks I was both challenged and mind-blown as I was given the opportunity to serve God out in California. I was continuously pushed spiritually, physically, and emotionally, and left with one option: to cry out to God.
I can say confidently that God gently and magnificently answered these calls because it is who He is. Since the very beginning of time when God granted Adam and Eve with clothes, He has taken on kindness as His nature and Provider as His title. Here are just a couple recent examples of God’s goodness and faithfulness because I believe that what He has done once He will do again, and that means answering our prayers!
Calming the Storm
“When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves,“Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm.” (Mark 4:39)
In this passage, Jesus and the disciples are resting on a boat when they find themselves caught in a storm. There was a night this summer when I found myself in practically an identical situation. What should have been a five-minute ride to the adjacent bay turned into two hours of frantically circling through the crashing waves and endless darkness. Just when patience and hope were next to nothing, we managed to find our place on shore and park up safely. It was an incredible feeling to know that we were secure and able to relax, but not nearly as remarkable as the event that followed.
Our boat suddenly became flooded with the glorious praises of a dozen middle school girls shouting, “God answered our prayers! He helped us park right after we prayed!” My heart began to melt as I soaked in the innocence and joy found in their words. So many times we think a situation is too small or insignificant or impossible for God to possibly play a part in it. Well, so many times we are wrong. All it took was the faith and humility of some teenage girls to ask their Father to get them through the storm, and He did it. He did it. Not because He had to, but because He wanted to be there for His daughters and show them that He hears their prayers, both in the “small” things and the big. What a great Dad we have.
Loving the Lonely
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Philippians 4:6)
It was a Thursday night which meant that we would be at the park for program. All was going as expected until I looked up in front of me and noticed a woman walking. There was nothing significant about this woman; most would have taken one glance before quickly returning to their own routines, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that she needed someone to love her.
I quickly approached the woman who must have been caught a little off guard, but she responded with ease and introduced herself to me. The conversation was natural as we shared about our lives, including the fact that she had just moved back to California on her own and was lacking community. After about forty minutes of chatting, a light bulb went off in her head as she enthusiastically told me, “I just remembered something!”
She proceeded to explain that she was supposed to meet with a friend of hers that night for a bible study, but her friend cancelled on her at the very last minute. Left with no plans, she decided to walk around the lake and gaze at its beauty. While the sight was wonderful, it couldn’t fill the void she felt. She decided to take a chance as she asked God, “Please don’t let me be lonely tonight.”
Joyfully, this woman celebrated, explaining that by meeting me, God had answered her prayer by bringing her a friend. When Paul says in Philippians to present your requests to God, it is because He hears them and responds! This is something that we both learned that night, and I am incredibly grateful that God let me be a part of that special moment of provision and care in her life.
Giving Good Gifts
“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11)
It is as simple as that. God delights in giving good gifts to His children! It is not too hard for Him. It is not us taking advantage of Him. It is an inevitable byproduct of being in relationship with our Heavenly Father!
These stories are just two of many examples of God’s faithfulness. I saw him comfort me with a blanket when I was on my own in an unfamiliar place, completely restore a camper’s health in just a few short hours, and bring me a butterfly when I desperately needed to see that He was present. All of this occurred not because I’m special or deserve these things, but because I asked.
We have a good Father who wants to answer your prayers. The question is, will you ask Him?
