ANSWERS TO PRAYERS

 

ANSWERS TO PRAYERS

I John 5:13-15 I write this to you who believe in the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. And we can be confident that he will listen to us whenever we ask him for anything in line with his will. And if we know he is listening when we make our requests, we can be sure that he will give us what we ask for. NLT

Do you know you have eternal life? Can you say with absolute certainty that it is true? How can you be sure? One of the ways we can be sure of our relationship with God is whether or not our prayers are answered or not. God answers the prayers of His children who pray in His will. He doesn't promise to hear and answer prayers that are outside of His will, only those in line with His will. How can we know we are praying in His will?

We know we are praying in God's will when what we ask for is in agreement with what we know is best for us as seen through God's eyes. Consider what we know of God: His character, nature, and love. Do our requests fit in? If what we pray for is consistent with God's known attributes and character, we can be confident that we will have what we ask for. God knows what we need better than what we do and will not give us what we don't need simply because we may want it or think we need it. He loves us way too much to do that for us. Spoiled children are never His will for us.

Two things you can always count on as far as what God wants you to know. He wants you to know who He is and what His will is for you. When we get those two things right, we can be sure that whatever we ask for from God will be granted to us.

Food for thought: the best way to stay lined up with God when we pray is to first spend time in worship of God before we ask Him for anything. Adoration should always precede asking.