Episode 14--He Was Answering All Along

Hello, Civilla Morgan here! Welcome to episode 14 of the Not Just Another Religion and Politics Podcast! Thank you for tuning in! So here’s the deal: 

I want this podcast to speak to people, not yell at people. Whether you are a Believer or not, a Christian or not, I want this podcast to be so plain in its language, that even if you have never stepped foot in a church, you will get this. You will get who Jesus is, and you will get what relationship with Him could be like, despite what people--Christians and non-Christians, try to do to get you to turn your back. Come along with me. I promise it will be a really cool experience! 

Body of episode:

You know those prayers you pray and there never seems to be an answer? You have prayed for years, time has passed, you are older, you have lived a lifetime, but the prayers were just never answered. 

 

Maybe like me, you never got the family you craved, assumed you would have. You prayed you begged, you bargained with God. But nothing. Or so you thought. But the fact is, He was answering all along. The difficulty is the answer did not come as expected. And in fact, the answer may not come to fruition until we are long gone. 

 

You see, I did not get the family I wanted, expected, felt deserving of. 

Yes, I deserved to have a family. Why should you have the spouse and kids and I did not? God doesn’t have favorites right? Right. 

But God does not answer prayer based on who is deserving or not, He answers based on His will be done and how the answer will work in His Kingdom. It’s not easy, but once we realize that it’s not about us, that we are not always going to be the center of attention, and that even so, even when our prayers are not answered the way we would like, but that God still loves and cares about us, we will recognize that even in the apparently unanswered prayers, there is an answer. 

 

The answer may be for us and it may be for someone else. The way we deal with our unanswered prayer could save someone else from making a bad decision or from giving up. It could help them push through to greater than they imagined for their life. 

We may never know how their witness of our pain could help so many thousands more, long after we are gone. We have to trust that even when things did not turn out as expected, God sees. He knows, and he will turn everything around for our good. 

‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.’--Romans 8:28.    

 

So in the course of my research, I found this website, compellingtruth.org, and I thought the following was a great explanation of what I’ve been saying:

‘God is not a God who chooses favorites based on His whims or even based on our good actions. He loves every human being, and we are all created in His image (John 3:16; Lamentations 3:22–23; Genesis 1:26–27). Those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ are children of God (John 1:12). If God shows favor to someone it is because His judgment is always perfect (Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 7:11; Romans 9:14–16). To be clear, "favoritism" is generally defined as giving preferential or unfair treatment to one group at the expense of another. However, "favor" is approval of something or an act of kindness beyond what is due.’-Compellingtruth.org.

 

 So the bottom line is:

1. He is answering our prayers. 
2. And He was answering all along. 

Keep praying. Don’t give up praying. And even after the time has passed for certain prayers to be answered, such as my wanting a family, don’t give up on prayer. Trust God in every stage of your life, and every stage of your prayers.  I am now well past the age where I could possibly even entertain the idea of raising a child. I’m sure if I had to God would give me the grace and the wherewithal to do it, but it is no longer at the top of my list. 

Even that is an answered prayer. There is still a missing part in my heart that I thought would be filled with a family of my own, but that part is being used to help other childless not by choice women, and men, come to terms with what did not happen for them. 

You see, there is no need to pretend that all is well, and oh, I didn’t need that family anyway. That they may have caused more grief than anything else. Because that is not true. But what is true is that I chose not to get stuck where things did not work out.   

When you choose not to get stuck, to keep Romans 8:28 close to your heart, then you will realize he was answering all along.  

Episode Takeaways:

He was answering all along. 

Research Links:

(I used the NIV version of the Bible for this episode.)

 

https://www.compellingtruth.org/does-God-have-favorites.html

 

21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?” 22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” 23 Because of this, the rumor spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”--John 21:21-23.

‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.’--Romans 8:28.

 

12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy[b] met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” 14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.--Luke 17:12-15.

Closing commentary:

Don’t forget, I would love to hear from you on the question: 

‘Who is God?’ 

 

Episode outro:

 

Well, thank you for tuning in. Let me know via social media or by email, if you have feedback. I would love to hear from you! You may email me at [email protected]. Please give me 24 to 48 hours to respond. And don’t forget to check the show notes for the sources used for this episode. Until next time! 

 

Episode quote:

'It's not about you.'--Civilla

'In the church, there is no 'they' and 'them', there is only us.'--Civilla

Reference 1 Corinthians 12:25-27 for proof.

 

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