Have you ever felt disappointed and alone because you thought God wasn’t answering your prayers? There have been many times in my life when I’ve prayed and the only thing I’ve heard from God was complete silence. God doesn’t always answer in the way we think He should as He knows better than we do. In fact, sometimes He doesn’t even answer our prayers at all. There are many reasons for unanswered prayers. Here are some of them:

1) He’s telling us to wait. It’s difficult to be patient when we're hurting or fearful or desperate. But we must depend on Him and be patient. He hasn’t answered our prayers yet, but He will. Psalm 27:14 tells us, “Wait for the LORD; be strong and let your heart take courage: Yes, wait for the LORD.”

2) He’s telling us to trust Him. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6) Just because He doesn’t answer each of our prayers instantaneously doesn’t mean He won’t answer them in His timing. He does have a plan for each and every one of us after all. “For I know the plans I have for you declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

3) We aren’t praying in accordance to His will. If our prayers come from our own fleshly, selfish desires, serving no one but ourselves, He doesn’t even hear them let alone answer them. God isn’t a vending machine or a genie in a lamp. Nor is He Santa Claus to whom we rattle off prayers as a list of things we want like its Christmas. James 4:3 says, “When you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” We must pray for things in accordance to the will of God. “This is the confidence we have in approaching God; that if we ask anything according to His will, he hears us.”  (1 John 5:14)

4) We lack faith. Allowing the enemy to plant the seeds of doubt in our hearts that grow will keep our prayers from being answered. We must resist the enemy who roars around like a lion seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8) If we pray in accordance to His will, we must believe that our prayers will be answered. Jesus said, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” (Matthew 21:22) We must cast out doubt. James tells us, “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. (James 1:6-8)

5) We are walking in sin and unrighteousness. When we are harboring spiritual poison in our hearts like unforgiveness and bitterness our prayers are hindered. When we are committing sexual sin or whatever it may be, our prayers are hindered. “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the LORD would not have listened…” (Psalm 66:18) We must root out all sin if we expect our prayers to be answered. Psalm 34: 15-17 says, “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their cry; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles.”

Dear Lord, I pray that we will repent of our sins and become righteous in your eyes. I pray that each one of us prays in accordance to your will. And when you are silent, I pray that we all trust wholeheartedly in you because it is you who knows what is best for each and every one of us. Amen.

Discernment of spirits is a spiritual gift God gives us to determine if what someone is proclaiming is from God and not of the flesh or from Satan.

But how do you know if what someone is proclaiming is from God? You test the spirits. "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." 1 John 4:1

How do we test the spirits?

1) Study The Word. If what the person is saying is against what the bible says, it is false doctrine or false teachings. True teachers will teach the truth that is based on scripture. "This is what the Lord Almighty says; Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord."

2) Look at their fruit. Are they exhibiting the fruit of the spirit mentioned in The Word? Galatians 5:22-23 tells us "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." Jesus warned his followers in Matthew 7:15-16 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?"

3) The person will acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the son of God and Lord. "Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, 'Jesus be cursed,' and one can say, 'Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit." Corinthians 12:3

Dear Lord, I pray for wisdom for those of us who want the spiritual gift of discernment. I pray that we are able to recognize the spiritual things that can only come from you. Amen

Maybe you are struggling today with feeling not valued. I have a story for you...

Early Wednesday morning, I heard a loud thump on the back door window. When I went to check it out, there on the back porch was a beautiful little bird lying on his back bleeding and dying. Poor thing had flown head first into the door window. He looked up at me as if to say, "Please help me." It broke my heart, and I seriously cried over that little bird all morning and asked God what I could do to help him. I could not stand to have the bird stay there and see him suffer.

Through my tears, I went and turned him over. I prayed that God would heal him or that he would be able to fly away to die if that was His will. My dog was at the door crying to get out, but there was no way I'd let him near that little bird. The bird sat there for a long while just trying to breathe. When I looked out a little later, he was gone. God took care of him. I was so touched by God's love and that He answered my prayer. God even cares about the little birds!

"Consider the raven: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!" Luke 12:24

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care." Matthew 10:29

Dear Lord, I pray that each one of us knows how much you love and value us. Amen

Sometimes it's hard to think of others when we're wrapped up in our own problems. It's easy to slip into that depressive woe-is-me mentality and to stay stuck in that self-absorbed state. I'm sure we've all struggled with this. I know I have. When we do this, we project a negative energy out into the world that in turn affects not only ourselves, but others as well. I know this because I'm a highly sensitive person who absorbs the emotions of others good and bad. In fact, I have to get away from negative people and just pray for them in order to maintain my sanity. I've found  that the more I think less of myself; focus on others; and try and put myself in their shoes, the smaller my problems become and the more joy I feel. God wants us to care about other people. Philippians 4 tells us, "Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don't look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too."

Although the following quotes aren't from the bible, they hold truth:

"The most miserable people are those who care only about themselves, understand their own troubles and see their own perspective." Anonymous

"Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care." Theodore Roosevelt

Dear Lord, I pray for us who want to become more caring people and that you will open our eyes to the needs of others. Thank you. Amen