Answers

As soon as I pray, you answer me;
you encourage me by giving me strength.
Psalm 138:3 (NLT)

This verse leaped out at me this morning. Over the past few weeks, I have had a couple of specific prayer requests that I have earnestly prayed about but I don't feel like I am getting any answers. And it has been discouraging. Day after day passes with no apparent change in the situations. But this verse says that "as soon as I pray," He answers. So where is the disconnect? As I pondered, I realized it is with me. I want Him to answer my requests—my way—on my time schedule. Yes, He promises to hear, answer, and give me strength and encouragement…but in HIS time frame. I have no idea what is going on in the heavenlies or behind the scenes. The battle is raging and I am on a need-to-know basis about all of it. I guess I don't need to know yet. The part that was new to me is that in those periods of waiting, He will encourage me by giving me strength. Rather than whining and complaining, I can watch with great expectation for what He is going to do. In our day and age, we have come to expect that an episode of life can be resolved in an hour, a cup of tea heats in 60 seconds, and a message can be sent in seconds over the Internet. But actually, none of that means anything in the time frame of God. As C. S. Lewis says in The Great Divorce, "This moment contains all moments." One day, our eyes will be opened and we will see the back-lot staging of our lives. For now, be encouraged.