Have You Forgotten My Request, God?
“Has God forgotten to be merciful?”
Psalm 77:9 (NIV)
The other day I found myself wanting an explanation from God. I know this sounds ridiculous but let me explain.
Some of my prayer requests are several years old. Healing, salvation, relationship restoration, and other long-term desires take time. I understand God knows far better than I do the perfect outcome and the best time to respond. But I also know that His flawless will may fail to match the way that makes so much sense to me. In fact, His answer might be, “no”, and I may have refused to recognize or accept that.
When the pain of unanswered prayer enters my day, I find myself asking God,
” Why are you silent and still when I know You could be powerful and present?”
Do you wonder the same thing sometimes?
These questions about His timing and His ways plant seeds of doubt about His goodness in our minds. They also diminish our faith and rob us of peace and joy.
So what should we do when our head acknowledges God’s supreme wisdom but our heart breaks with very human agony?
Asaph wrestled with this same dilemma. In Psalm 77:9, we read that Asaph was distressed and too troubled to speak. In his agony, he asked, “Has God forgotten to be merciful?”
It’s an act of faith to cry out to God in our distress and with our questions. The sons of Israel, Moses, Samuel, Nehemiah, David, Peter, and even Jesus cried out to the Lord looking for comfort and reassurance of His goodness during times of trouble.
So where is God, and what is He doing when our aching hearts long for a response?
God is always doing three things:
He is working all things together for good
He is redeeming what was lost
He is making all things new.
If anyone had a reason to doubt God’s plan to work all things together for good, it was Joseph. Over the course of two decades, Joseph was sold into slavery, unjustly accused, and left in jail while those he helped free failed to help him. His father thought he was dead, his brothers abandoned him, Potiphar’s wife unjustly accused him, and the cupbearer forgot about him. Joseph must have wondered if God neglected him or abandoned him, just like everyone else in his life. If you feel this way too, take heart. God is working all things together for good. Joseph breathed in, and Joseph breathed out and suddenly God put Joseph in charge of Egypt and dressed him in fine robes of linen and reunited him with his family. God was working all things together for good.
Maybe you lost something of incredible value, such as a child, a marriage, or a happier time in life. Job lost everything too. He lost his family, his health, and his wealth, and in his distress, Job questioned God’s sovereignty. Maybe, like Job, you wonder if God is acting on your behalf. Take heart! Job breathed in, and Job breathed out, and suddenly God redeemed all that Job lost and gave him twice as much as he had before. God cares very much about your pain and will redeem all that you’ve lost in His time and His way.
Perhaps you are stuck in an old job, a lifeless marriage, a difficult life, or an impossible situation. When there seems to be no way out, we need to look at the cross to remember that God makes all things new. Jesus breathed in, and Jesus breathed out, and on His last breath, He defeated death and bought salvation for all those who turn to Him and believe. God is working on a way to make all things new in your life, too.
God is not punishing you or ignoring you. He hasn’t forgotten about you, and He’s not indifferent to your anguish. Instead, He’s building character and faith and spiritual muscle all the while drawing near to give you strength.
Instead of agonizing over God’s silence and stillness, we need to remind ourselves that He’s present now, and He’s busy using His power to work all things together for good, to redeem what’s lost, and to make all things new. It’s just a God-sized breath away.
Dear Heavenly Father, you know my despair and heartache. Help me believe that you are working all things out for good in my life; you are redeeming what I’ve lost, and making all things new. Give me patience and the strength to trust you with my future and provide what I need to believe in your plan today. Help me to feel you drawing near and strengthening me. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Resources to Help:
1. Using three of your favorite Bible characters, note when they cried out for help and how God responded to their prayers. Include the how and when of His response.
2. Has God ever ignored His people?
3. Ask Him to help you trust Him and to provide patience while you’re waiting.
Songs to Help:
1. “Another in the Fire” – Hillsong United
“Look Up Child” – Lauren Daigle