“If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” Psalm 66:18
May 21, 2025
There will be times when there is seemingly no answer to our prayers. We know that prayer is the Christian’s great offensive weapon in spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:18). It is a vital part of the divine strategy of effecting God’s will on this earth. We need to stop and take stock of ourselves as to why our prayers go unanswered. This may be because of unconfessed sin. Prayer was not designed to be a substitute for confession of sin. Am I harboring an unforgiving spirit (Matt. 6:14, 15; Eph. 4:30-32)? We can’t confess our sin nature. We can, and should, when necessary, confess specific sins. This requires a healthy sense of sin, not morbid introspection, but a genuine openness to God. Am I grieving the Holy Spirit? Wrong motives can short-circuit our prayers (Jas. 4:3). Sometimes we use prayer as a cloak to hide our true desires. Do I want the glory of God? Jonah begged God that he would die. But he was fretting out of self-pity rather than pity for the unsaved Assyrians (Jon. 4:8). Why do I want healing for my sickness? Self-centeredness takes effective praying off the tracks of effective intercession. To be continued.
H
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psa. 139:23-24