Why do prayers go "Unanswered"?
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God NEVER ignores the prayers of his children.
(With one exception - 1 Peter 3:7)
7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
Men, bear in mind that the way you live out your role as husband and Father, communicates to all the world what Jesus is like as the bridegroom. This is a weighty responsibility and it is one that we are called to step into. When we fail to live into this calling, our personal relationship with God is affected. Our prayers are hindered. This is the only recorded instance in scripture of prayers being hindered.
Big Idea #1
He answers prayer for His greater glory and our greater good.
Matt. 7:7-11
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.
9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?
11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
We notice two things here about God’s character; 1) is that he is generous, and 2) that his generosity flows out of his love. God is not stingy with his children. He WILL NOT withhold anything from us that is genuinely for our good. We think we have the market on parental love, “wanting what’s best” for our kids. We seldom stop to ask ourselves “Who do you think invented parental love?”. When we ask for stuff and don’t get it, our automatic reaction is to think, “Oh, I guess God doesn’t answer prayers like that after all, he doesn’t like answering prayers miraculously.” The reality is that he himself is generous in all things, including generously protecting us from what is the most harmful to us.
Big Idea #2 - Why are we told “No”?
We ask for the wrong things and for the wrong reasons. -(James 4:2-5).
C. S. Lewis observed that humans have a knack for asking precisely for the things which are the worst for us. Such things as longer life, money, fame, status; just what do you think that’s going to do to us? It is harder for a rich man to get to heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.
2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
This really is the heart of the matter. If God has said “No” to a prayer request, its because either the gift or your motivation stinks. He says no, because it’s not going to be a good thing for you.
We are told to pray boldly and persistently.
James 5:13-18; Luke 11:1-11.
That all being said, scripture encourages us to pray boldly and persistently. When we read through the book of James, its amazing what we are encouraged to pray for. We are encouraged to pray for everything from physical healing to spiritual maturity.