“And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” 1 John 5:15 NIV
He hears us. Since God hears everything and even knows the unspoken secrets of our hearts, John means that He hears us favourably by coming to our aid. I’ve been at a gathering where many children were playing as the adults sat eating or talking. Suddenly one mother jumped up and ran for her child. Why? Because she heard their cry. None of the other parents heard the cry, or if they did, they knew that it was not their child. But the mother knows the cry of her own child, and she responds to their need. Our heavenly Father knows the cry of His children. He hears our prayers. The idea of this verse is that we know that we presently have whatever we have asked in accord with His will. We may not actually see it for many years, but it’s as good as done. Abraham prayed for a son and God promised to give him that son. But it was 25 years before Abraham held Isaac in his arms. There is much in Scripture about waiting on God. We would be mistaken to think that God is promising that if we pull the prayer lever, all the goodies instantly come out of the chute. Sometimes in His purpose and wisdom, God delays the answers to our prayers for years. Yet, in another sense, He has already granted the requests. Usually, we should continue praying until the request is granted (Luke 18:1-8). At other times and I can’t give you a rule for this, we should be filling our prayers with thanksgiving that our prayers have been heard, and thanking God for who He is: all-powerful, ever-present, all-knowing, unchanging, merciful, forgiving, our Shepherd, our Provider and so much more.
PRAYER THOUGHT
Lord, thank You for hearing as we call upon You in prayer.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, thank You for hearing our prayers. Even though we may wait for Your answer, we continue with thanksgiving because You are all-powerful, unchanging, ever-present, all-knowing, full of mercy and grace. AMEN
I.B.R.A. Readings
Jeremiah 29:1-14
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