Hello, Is It Really You God?
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. ~ PSALM 5:3 (NIV)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ~ PHILIPPIANS 4:6 (NIV)
As children, we learn that God answers prayer. We question how God will answer us. Will He call on the telephone, or maybe send a letter? As we mature in our faith journey, we come to realize there are many ways God speaks to us.
For example, I have personally experienced visual pictures and have witnessed visions come true. I have received pictures to confirm a vision. However, what I did not understand at the time was the storm that was to come from my visions. I was reminded in Isaiah 41:13 that the Lord God will take me by my right hand and not to fear; He is with me. I felt encouraged to continue with a particular prayer request I had been making. Repetitive prayer is good. God never gets tired of hearing from us.
After a period of time I began to suspect that God was sending me messages again. My dilemma: Was it really God or was it my mind playing tricks? How was I to know? I began to question my faith. Not in God, but in my interpreting the message, because it was so important to my prayer request and I wanted the message to be from God, not my imagination.
Then, on the way home from a visit with friends in late September 2017 as I was gazing out the window (I was not driving), a very large billboard came into view. The picture message on that billboard was clear to me, and I felt God saying, “Hang in there. I know we have a deadline; all is well.”
A few more weeks went by. On a Thursday evening about 8:30, our telephone rang with a message that God had answered my prayer. On the following Monday around 1:00 p.m., I received a picture via text message from my daughter, and later that same day I held our answered prayer in my arms — our new granddaughter!
God reminded me again: “In my time.” You just never know if, how, or when prayer will be answered.
Thank you, God, for the privilege and blessing of prayer. We ask that we may understand the answer, no matter how it is delivered.
BONNIE HACKNEY, ZION COMMUNITY CHURCH