“Those who revere the Lord tell each other: ‘The Lord pays attention and hears everything, and a book of remembrance is written before Him for those who revere the Lord and honor His name.’ The Lord Almighty says: ‘So they will be Mine, My own possession on the day which I shall determine. I will be gracious to them as a man is gracious to his son who serves him.’” (Book of the prophet Malachi, ch. 3, vs. 16-17*, the darker font is ours)
Do “unanswered” prayers exist? Have you ever experienced a moment in your life when you asked something of God, desired something from Him, prayed for help and a way out, but Heaven remained silent? Did you truly not receive an answer or did you fail to recognize it as such? Could it be that the answer is not understandable to you now because you need more pieces of the puzzle?
When Jesus Christ predicts to His disciples what is going to happen to Him, how He will be captured, judged, and killed, at one point He stops speaking and says, “I have much more to say to you, but now you cannot bear it. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you the things that are to come.” (Gospel of John, ch. 16, vs. 12-13*, the darker font is ours)
The verb “bear” in Greek in this passage carries the metaphorical meaning “to accept something calmly and peacefully.” The verb for “guide” in the second sentence implies “to teach, instruct, show” or “lead someone along the way.” Sometimes the answers to our prayers or the things we long to understand from God at the moment simply might not be within our power; we cannot “bear” or accept them calmly because we lack the context of many other situations that will unfold over time.
The disciples do not know that over 2000 years after the death of Jesus Christ, Christianity will be the most widespread religion in the world, and the Bible, in which it is written, will be the most read book ever. What they know at that moment in their lives is that their best friend, their Teacher, and their only hope for deliverance from the Roman oppressor predicts that He will be killed. From the perspective of time, an event can appear so differently. That is why Jesus Himself says that “the Spirit of truth will come, who will guide them into all truth” – leading them along the way directly, step by step, revealing and unfolding the truth gradually – so that they can bear it.
Do you now understand why many times it seems that God does not hear us, remains silent, or hides things from us? We must be absolutely sure that every word and even thought of ours is taken into consideration and remembered by our Heavenly Father. He cares about our inner world, the things we experience, and has an answer for every prayer and question. The only thing that might withhold the answer that “those who revere God” wish to receive is the time and missing facts and situations in the overall picture. If you still haven’t received the answer or God’s intervention that you expect, know that He is not passive, distracted, deaf, uninterested, or even cruel. It simply requires more time and circumstances for you to fully understand His answer. If this does not happen here on earth, you have this hope: “Now we see dimly, as in a mirror, but then we shall see face to face; now I know in part, but then I shall know fully, as God knows me.” (First Epistle to the Corinthians, ch. 13, vs. 12*, the darker font is ours)
Question of the week: Do you have children or close family with young children? Try to remember what were the hardest questions your children asked you and what it felt like to answer them. Ask friends or acquaintances what were the most challenging questions their children asked that they had to answer. Where does the difficulty in answering them lie?
*Biblical quotes are according to the text of the Bible, new translation from the original languages © Bulgarian Bible Society 2013.
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