2021-01-10
Habakkuk 2:3 NIV
Before leaving our study on obstacles to answered prayer, let’s be clear about one thing: some of our unanswered prayers have been answered. The answer is “wait.” But because we don’t like the answer, we keep hoping God will have a change of heart. The truth is God won’t change His mind to accommodate us. So we have two options: (1) Keep complaining to Him. (2) Start cooperating with Him.
When the prophet Habakkuk needed an answer to his prayers in order to give direction to Israel, what did God tell him? Wait! “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it…Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay” (vv. 2-3 NIV).
God works according to His own plan and schedule, and He won’t be rushed. When you try to get ahead of Him you always end up in trouble. Abraham did that, and the end result was Ishmael. That’s when Abraham’s troubles began in earnest!
Other times God answers our prayers and says, “No.” He knows what you can handle and when you’ll be ready to handle it, and He won’t give it to you before then. Paul said, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord…But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness'” (2 Corinthians12:8-9 NIV). Instead of delivering Paul from his problem, God used it to develop him. Without his thorn in the flesh to counterbalance his great talent and potential pride, Paul wouldn’t have been nearly so effective in the service of God. Think about it!
Soul food: 1 Sam 17:4-51; Eph 6:10-18
2021-01-09
Matthew 5:24 NIV
The fifth obstacle to answered prayer is an unforgiving spirit. Your anger may feel justified, but it can produce long term results that hurt you. Regardless of “who did what to whom,” resentment is hazardous to your health and spiritual well-being.
Jesus said, “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift” (vv. 23-24 NIV). Satan will keep hurting you every day of your life – until you decide to forgive. God says, “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins” (Isaiah 43:25). Forget it, for God’s sake; when you keep bringing it up you bother Him!
Is God really serious about this? Yes. He “struck down some of the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, putting seventy of them to death because they looked into the ark of the Lord” (1 Samuel 6:19 NIV). What was in the ark? The Ten Commandments which we’ve all broken; the record of our guilt and failure. Think twice before you decide to “lift the lid” on someone else’s sins; you’re in a dangerous place with God! You say, “But they don’t deserve to be forgiven.” None of us do, but God keeps forgiving us anyway. And His Word says, “Forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32). So if you want God to answer your prayers – forgive, and let it go!
Soul food: Exo 19-21; Matt 5:38-48; Ps 46; Prov 1:32-33
2021-01-08
John 15:7 NIV
The fourth obstacle to prayer is unscriptural prayers. Jesus said, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
Those who live by the principles of God’s Word don’t pray to win the lottery, or for their horse to finish first in the Kentucky Derby. They know that those are unscriptural prayers God won’t honor. When you pray, your request must line up with His will.
After leading the children of Israel for forty years in the wilderness Moses naturally longed to enter the Promised Land and celebrate victory with them; to “go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan – that fine hill country and Lebanon” (Deuteronomy 3:25 NIV). But in spite of his prayers it didn’t happen. Why? “Because…the Lord was angry…and would not listen…’That is enough,’ the Lord said. ‘Do not speak to me anymore about this matter. Go up to the top of Pisgah and look west and north and south and east. Look at the land with your own eyes, since you are not going to cross this Jordan'” (vv. 26-27 NIV).
Prayer isn’t some kind of talisman, or lucky charm, or religious formula you repeat to get the results you want. When your prayers line up with the Scriptures and are in harmony with God’s will, then will He answer them. This truth may not be palatable or popular in today’s “feel good” generation where everybody wants all the benefits of God’s kingdom on their own terms. If you’re serious about getting your prayers answered – read the fine print!
Soul food: Exo 16-18; Matt 5:27-37; Ps 42:6-11; Prov 1:28-31
2021-01-07
1 John 3:21 NIV
The third obstacle to answered prayer is unconfessed sin. After conquering Jericho, the strongest city in the Promised Land, the Israelites were defeated by a handful of soldiers in a small village called Ai. Joshua was devastated! He “tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord” (Joshua 7:6 NIV). Listen to his prayer: “The other people of the country will hear about this and they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. What then will you do for your own great name?” (v. 9 NIV).
How did God respond? You might be surprised. “The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? Israel has sinned'” (vv.10-11 NIV). What had happened? Achan, an Israeli soldier, had stolen some of the spoils of battle which belonged to God. Jericho was the first city in the Promised Land to be conquered, and God said the “firstfruits” of all we have must be given to Him (See Proverbs 3:9). The treasures from the next nine battles belonged to the people, but the treasures of Jericho belonged to God.
There’s a time to pray, and a time to stop praying, so you can deal with the sin in your life. You can’t pray, “Lord, what do You want to do?” when you already know what to do but aren’t willing to do it. Is God speaking to you through today’s reading? “If our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him” (1 John 3:21-22 NIV).
Soul food: Exo 13-15; Matt 5:13-26; Ps 42:1-5; Prov 1:20-27
2021-01-06
James 4:3 NLT
Another obstacle to answered prayer is selfishness. In the Lord’s Prayer, you won’t find the words “I,” or “me,” or “my,” or “mine.” What you will find instead, is: “Give us this day our daily bread; forgive us our trespasses; deliver us from evil” (See Matthew 6:11-13). Are you getting the idea? The man who prays, “Lord bless me, my wife and two children: us four and no more,” won’t get a favourable response from heaven. Jesus said, “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark11:24 NKJV). But that Scripture isn’t a blank check: God’s answer to selfish prayers is always no.
James writes, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4:3 NKJV). Maybe you’re thinking, “The Bible says if I delight myself in the Lord, He will give me whatever my heart desires” (See Psalm 37:4). Yes, but your desires must be in harmony with God’s will.
God blessed Abraham so that he could become a blessing to others (See Genesis12:2-3). God knows what you want, and He also knows why you want it. Is it only for your own comfort and convenience, or also to fulfill His purposes? Only when you have answered that question honestly, can you pray with confidence. When you look out only for your own interest, only one person is working on your behalf – you! But when your goal is to bless others, God goes to work and answers your prayer in ways you never imagined possible. Try it, and see for yourself!
Soul food: Exo 10-12; Matt 5:1-12; Ps 10:12-18; Prov 1:17-19
2021-01-05
Jeremiah 33:3 NKJV
For the next few days let’s look at some reasons why our prayers aren’t answered: Fallen angelic powers. For three weeks Daniel prayed and got no answer. Why? Because an evil force in the spiritual realm, “the Prince of Persia,” blocked it (See Daniel10:13). So God assigned Michael, one of the archangels, to do battle with him. Twenty-one days later the struggle ended, and Daniel got his answer.
Paul says, “We are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world…against evil spirits in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12 NLT).
How powerful is the Devil? Powerful enough to deceive you (See 2 Corinthians 4:4). Powerful enough to bring sickness (See Job 2:7). Powerful enough to oppose the righteous (See Zechariah 3:1). Powerful enough to devour you (See1 Peter 5:8). You ask, “What can I do to overcome him?”
After telling us we’re fighting against the forces of the unseen world, Paul says, “Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers” (Ephesians 6:18 NLT). The Christ who lives within you is stronger than the Enemy you face. Jesus said, “When a strong man like Satan is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe – until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him” (Luke 11:21-22 NLT). Satan is strong, but Jesus is “even stronger.”
John records: “The accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down to earth – the one who accuses them before our God day and night. And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony” (Revelation12:10-11 NLT). Aren’t you glad?
Soul food: Exo 7-9; Matt 4:12-25; Ps 10:1-11; Prov 1:10-16
