Thankful for unanswered prayers?!

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Krumbeard

Krumbeard

Well-known member
#1
Apr 15, 2019
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#1
Has God ever not answered your prayer and now you feel grateful to him that he didn't?

This was a question asked by Ruby123 in another thread. I thought it was worth it's own thread. Thanks Ruby!

My answer to this is yes. Many years ago when I was in 7th grade I had an interest in a girl from then through high school and till after college. Multiple times here and there we had dates. I prayed a lot that we would marry. It never happened. (I ended up meeting her friend and got married to her.) She ended up marrying and have 2 children. Some years went by and she left her husband and identified as a lesbian.
Oh how grateful I am that I never married her.

I have been in contact with her in the last couple years. I ask that you pray for her. Thanks.
 
Leastamongmany

Leastamongmany

Well-known member
#2
Jun 2, 2019
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#2
Krumbeard said:
Has God ever not answered your prayer and now you feel grateful to him that he didn't?

This was a question asked by Ruby123 in another thread. I thought it was worth it's own thread. Thanks Ruby!

My answer to this is yes. Many years ago when I was in 7th grade I had an interest in a girl from then through high school and till after college. Multiple times here and there we had dates. I prayed a lot that we would marry. It never happened. (I ended up meeting her friend and got married to her.) She ended up marrying and have 2 children. Some years went by and she left her husband and identified as a lesbian.
Oh how grateful I am that I never married her.

I have been in contact with her in the last couple years. I ask that you pray for her. Thanks.
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Praying! God and His wisdom are awesome!
 
R

Ruby123

Guest
#3
#3
Hi Krumbeard:) yes God has not answered my prayers quite a few times where later on I have been thankful that he hasn't.
I remember once I was not happy in my job and applied for another one I thought was alot better. I prayed that I would get it. I went for an interview for it and was full of faith. I didn't get it and was quite upset with God. I asked him why I didn't get it, after all I was unhappy in the job I was in. I asked him if he could tell me why because my faith in him was shaken and I didn't want to feel that way towards him.
A couple of days later I was at a friends house and a car pulled up and a woman came to the door. She was friends with my friend and happened to work in the company and section of the job I applied for. She burst out crying saying that the company had changed management and the staff were very unhappy and stressed. She ended up becoming very sick over it and resigned. She and others suffered alot. When I heard that I was very thankful that God had not answered that prayer and aplogised to him on my knees.
 
Krumbeard

Krumbeard

Well-known member
#4
Apr 15, 2019
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#4
Ruby123 said:
Hi Krumbeard:) yes God has not answered my prayers quite a few times where later on I have been thankful that he hasn't.
I remember once I was not happy in my job and applied for another one I thought was alot better. I prayed that I would get it. I went for an interview for it and was full of faith. I didn't get it and was quite upset with God. I asked him why I didn't get it, after all I was unhappy in the job I was in. I asked him if he could tell me why because my faith in him was shaken and I didn't want to feel that way towards him.
A couple of days later I was at a friends house and a car pulled up and a woman came to the door. She was friends with my friend and happened to work in the company and section of the job I applied for. She burst out crying saying that the company had changed management and the staff were very unhappy and stressed. She ended up becoming very sick over it and resigned. She and others suffered alot. When I heard that I was very thankful that God had not answered that prayer and aplogised to him on my knees.
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Trusting God is hard! Especially when we think we have things figured out. It is so hard to "not lean on your own understanding". At least for me anyway.
 
R

Ruby123

Guest
#5
#5
Krumbeard said:
Trusting God is hard! Especially when we think we have things figured out. It is so hard to "not lean on your own understanding". At least for me anyway.
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Hard for me too, one of my weaknesses :ROFL: but everytime I pray and it is not being answered the way I would hope I remind myself of the other occasions where I am glad God did not answer my prayer the way I wanted. I still fail at getting upset with him though :( but I am getting slightly better (y)
 
Lynx

Lynx

Folksy yet erudite
#6
Aug 13, 2014
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#6
A child is never happy when Mom says he can't have a cookie. But there is a reason for Mom saying he can't have it, and it doesn't have anything to do with the cost of cookies these days.

The older I get, the more I am glad Mom made me eat healthy, as my peers start breaking down while my body is still going strong. And the older I get, the more I am... well, not really GLAD, but accepting... when God says no.
 
Leastamongmany

Leastamongmany

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Jun 2, 2019
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#8
😢😢😢beautiful and thank you for sharing! I hope its on utube. Im cryibg like a baby it touched my heart so deeply
 
A

Adstar

Senior Member
#9
Jul 24, 2016
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#9
Krumbeard said:
Trusting God is hard! Especially when we think we have things figured out. It is so hard to "not lean on your own understanding". At least for me anyway.
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Yes indeed.. We need to remind ourselves every now and then that God knows best and to trust His judgement on the matter.. (y)
 
BrotherMike

BrotherMike

Be Still and Know
#11
Jan 8, 2018
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#11
When we trust in God’s will, we are thankful for answered and unanswered prayers. What if the unanswered prayer that was granted turned for the worse? God only knows and trusting in Him that He is good all the time gives us a thankful heart.
 
melita916

melita916

Senior Member
#12
Aug 12, 2011
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#12
My first real crush happened as a junior in high school. He was one of my good friends. He wasn’t a Christian. To be honest, neither was I lol. But I was the Christian kid and knew better than to date a non Christian. But I remember telling God, “I don’t care! If he asks me out, I’m saying yes!!!” Well, he never did lol.

We stayed friends. Eventually, he became an agnostic. I’m pretty sure things would have gone bad if we were dating.
 
Lynx

Lynx

Folksy yet erudite
#13
Aug 13, 2014
27,369
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#13
BrotherMike said:
When we trust in God’s will, we are thankful for answered and unanswered prayers. What if the unanswered prayer that was granted turned for the worse? God only knows and trusting in Him that He is good all the time gives us a thankful heart.
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Yeah, ask Hezekiah about that one. ;)
 
theanointedwinner

theanointedwinner

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#14
Nov 6, 2018
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#14
Ruby123 said:
I asked him if he could tell me why because my faith in him was shaken and I didn't want to feel that way towards him.
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for this part, you probably wish that God gave you a glimpse of the vision "why" so that anytime you feel upset, you'd be glad as if "faith in the message of the god given vision" and anytime you might be tempted to feel "ha ha", you'd be forgetting the reason "why" as if temporary amnesia to avoid pride, and whenever upset

but God probably still have his reasons why he have you wait for couple of days later

Ruby123 said:
aplogised to him on my knees
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maybe that's the reason why,
... a broken and contrite heart O God you will not despise (Psalms 51:17)
 
Leastamongmany

Leastamongmany

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#15
Jun 2, 2019
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#15
theanointedwinner said:
for this part, you probably wish that God gave you a glimpse of the vision "why" so that anytime you feel upset, you'd be glad as if "faith in the message of the god given vision" and anytime you might be tempted to feel "ha ha", you'd be forgetting the reason "why" as if temporary amnesia to avoid pride, and whenever upset

but God probably still have his reasons why he have you wait for couple of days later



maybe that's the reason why,
... a broken and contrite heart O God you will not despise (Psalms 51:17)
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God can get angry. We have His same emotions....let us make man in our image has many conatations!
 
R

Ruby123

Guest
#16
#16
About two years ago I had to have my cat Ruby put down as she was attacked by a feral cat. I prayed at the time that God would heal her as she was very dear to me. My prayer was unanswered and I was very upset. About a year or so later circumstances in my life changed and I moved from the country area to the city. Ruby would have hated it in the city. She was a country cat who enjoyed her freedom. The heat, traffic and confinement of city living would not have been to her enjoyment. Also where I moved to there was no pets allowed. She and I were very close and she did not trust or take to anybody else. I can see now why my prayer was not answered. Still miss her though :cry::cry:
 
Mii

Mii

Well-known member
#17
Mar 23, 2019
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#17
Wow. Interesting topic. I suppose it's a lifelong thing to eventually be grateful for unanswered prayers.

Like dad can I have that entire tray of cookies? (hmm sick child or happy child) You can have a qualified one as well as an unqualified 2 more.

I can see how some are not in the best interest of the kingdom when originally asked for but I have asked for some rather bizarre things that doctrinally would be rather unbiblical if answered so I definitely respect the Lord's judgement on whether I get cookies or not ;)
 
G

Godsgirl83

Guest
#18
#18
The topic is "un- ANSWERED prayers"?
I too have had my share of times that prayers or "prayers" were unanswered or at least seemed to be. (no examples on hand right now though, but that's not where I'm going with this so we'll just save those for later)
There is one thing I've noticed here that hasn't been brought up.
Going back to parents, children and cookies.
When it is almost dinner time and Jr. asks for a cookie, Dad gives him an answer. The answer is "NO"
"NO" is an answer.
So even though sometimes it seems as though prayers are "un-ANSWERED", if it is a "NO", then it has been answered.;)
 
G

Godsgirl83

Guest
#19
#19
So years ago, when I was a teen and not really walking with the Lord, I was a big country music fan. This song just came back to mind reading this thread:
 
Krumbeard

Krumbeard

Well-known member
#20
Apr 15, 2019
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#20
Godsgirl83 said:
The topic is "un- ANSWERED prayers"?
I too have had my share of times that prayers or "prayers" were unanswered or at least seemed to be. (no examples on hand right now though, but that's not where I'm going with this so we'll just save those for later)
There is one thing I've noticed here that hasn't been brought up.
Going back to parents, children and cookies.
When it is almost dinner time and Jr. asks for a cookie, Dad gives him an answer. The answer is "NO"
"NO" is an answer.
So even though sometimes it seems as though prayers are "un-ANSWERED", if it is a "NO", then it has been answered.;)
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Yes. Exactly! I was thinking that when I wrote the OP but didn't clarify.

Thanks for pointing that out!
 
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