Waiting for Answered Prayers
Have you ever stopped to think that the way we pray might
make the difference in how the prayers are answered? I questioned this after
hearing the following story.
Three years out of work can seem like an eternity. The job
search, phone calls, networking, interviews, resumes get old after a while.
That's where my second cousin was after being laid off from her job.
We had all been praying for what seemed a very long time in our finite minds, but God's mind is not always like ours. So as Carol waited patiently or maybe a bit frustrated at times, God was indeed at work behind the scenes, but what was He trying to teach everyone during this long stretch in the desert?
Could it be patience, trust, dependence or something entirely different?
After the weeks, months and years of Carol's job hunting my cousin Jane, mother of the unemployed, woke up one morning and had her quiet prayer time with the Lord. As she prayed she recalls asking God for two important things. First she prayed that God would hold her deceased mother in His arms and let her know that she is loved. Next she prayed that as she went about her daily activities, including attending her luncheon club, others would see Jesus in her. She never dreamed the way in which God would answer her prayers.
Upon arriving at the luncheon, Jane spoke to a lady who had been friends with her mother. She in turn introduced my cousin to a lady who was new to the area, but more importantly she oversees all of the libraries in town. Jane recalled that her daughter had just applied for a position at the local library and mentioned it to her new acquaintance.
And now you have probably figured out the rest of the story. The librarian returned back to her office, looked up Carol's application and called her for an interview and subsequently hired her. Carol has now been working for 3 months and is thriving.
Why did it take so long for God to answer the prayers that had been offered up for many years? Had the librarian seen Jesus in my cousin Jane and that is what caused the prompt hiring? We may not know exactly, but when we pray that others will see Jesus in us it pleases Him and can even use it to bring honor and glory to Himself and touch others.
1 Peter 2:12 Live such good lives among the pagans that,
though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
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