“I prayed to the LORD, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears.” Psalm 34:4 (NLT)
I have belonged to the Auto Club for many years. Occasionally, we have gone long periods of time without needing assistance, but when something does break, or we run out of gas, it is comforting to hear the words, “Help is on the way!” To have the assurance that we will not be left stranded in our vehicles is one thing, but much more incredible is the security that God gives us that when we find ourselves between life’s “a rock and a hard place,” he is ready to respond to our cries for help.
David wrote Psalm 34 during a challenging time in his life. In some ways, he was the victim of his success, or more accurately, the success that came to him because of his obedience to the Lord. God’s favor upon David’s life caused Saul to be jealous, and as a result, David was on the run. David fled to King Achish of Gath because sometimes we think that the enemy of our enemy could be our friend, but David’s reputation had preceded him, and the people of Gath looked on David with apprehension.
God Answers Prayer
Our text informs us that David prayed to the Lord, and the Lord answered his prayer, but what are the keys to getting our prayers answered? When we need assistance from the auto club, we must take several steps and follow procedures, but how do we receive help from God? We may have heard of or know of others who get their prayers answered, but we still have questions for some reason. How can we be sure that God hears our prayers? And if he hears our prayers, how do we know that he will answer them?
Let’s start by seeing what the Bible tells us about God answering our prayers. “And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.” 1 John 5:14–15 (NLT)
Confidence
God lets us know that we can have confidence that he hears us and answers our prayers. However, you may notice that there is a condition attached to this promise. It says, “He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him.” How do we know what pleases him? To begin with, we can always pray for people to come to know him. Peter reminds us that God is not willing that any should perish. We can confidently pray for healing because Psalm 103 tells us that “He heals all of our diseases,” and Isaiah 53 lets us know “that by His wounds we are healed.” In short, it is not very difficult to pray according to the will of God.
So what is it that prevents us from having our prayers answered? We may have prayed concerning some desperate situation in our lives, and yet we waited, sometimes losing hope and confidence. We may believe that God is willing, but yet we ask, “Where is our answer?” What will it take for a breakthrough, and when can we expect to see God move in our situation? There are no magic formulas, but we can see patterns in Scripture that have prepared the way for answered prayer.
Removing Roadblocks
Time and time again in Scripture, we see that confession of sin opened the way for answered prayer. Nehemiah confessed and asked forgiveness for his sins and the sins of the people before undertaking the rebuilding of the wall in Jerusalem. Confession of sin and repentance led to a breakthrough of answered prayer many times.
Great Expectations
Secondly, when we go to God in prayer and expecting an answer, we must not have an alternative plan held in reserve. God wants us to recognize that he is our sole source of everything that we need. As the Psalmist said, “Whom have I in heaven but you?” God can answer prayers in many different ways and even through avenues that seem rather strange, but he wants us to recognize that he is our source. In Scripture, Egypt often represents this world’s system. “What sorrow awaits those who look to Egypt for help, trusting their horses, chariots, and charioteers and depending on the strength of human armies instead of looking to the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.” Isaiah 31:1 (NLT)
The third key for answered prayer is that we have compassion for others, especially the poor and those in need. We should not expect God to hear us and our call for help if we do not hear the call for help of those in need. “Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered.” Proverbs 21:13 (NIV)
Surprises from God
God may not always answer our prayers in the way we expect, but we can count on God to do more than we ever expect. After all, With God’s power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine. Ephesians 3:20 (NCV)
We will have confidence because he is our only source and supply. Finally, we will be people of compassion who are attentive to the calls for help from the poor and those in need. With these three conditions met, we can confidently approach God. “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Hebrews 4:16 (NLT)
Steve Ekeroth