Do you ever feel like God doesn’t hear your prayers? When I feel this way, it’s usually because I don’t believe what is happening could possibly be His answer to my prayers. I surmise that He isn’t giving me what I want, or He isn’t acting fast enough. Like a bratty two-year-old, I want it now. I complain like the prophet Habakkuk, thinking, “How long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen” (1:2)?


Yet God’s timing is perfect. He is in control. He is still on the throne, and His ways are not my ways (Isaiah 55:8). The Bible says that our prayers are a sweet aroma, like incense offered up to God (Revelation 5:8) and that He delights to hear our prayers. Aren’t those reassuring words?


Don’t give up. If anything, be like the persistent widow in Luke 18. Wait on the Lord. Trust His provision and His timing. “In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Often we can look back later and see how God did indeed answer our prayers.