Thankful for unanswered prayers?!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

aplogised to him on my knees

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)

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.