When I became a believer at age 13, my pastor told me to begin praying for my parents to become believers. I followed his direction, and I started praying that God would save my mom and dad.
Frankly, God took His time.
My dad turned to Christ when he was 71 — 36 years after I began praying for him. God dramatically changed my dad (so much so that we weren’t always sure he was the same person!), but it still took more than three decades for God to answer my prayer.
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My mom took even longer. Eleven years after God saved my dad, my mom turned to Christ at age 79. She lived only six months longer, but she, too, was unbelievably different after her conversion. Still, God listened to my prayers for 47 years before He answered them.
At the time of mom’s conversion, I said more than once to others, “When God finally answers your prayers, you don’t worry about the delay anymore.” And, I still stand by that statement today. When I knew both my parents had met Jesus, it didn’t bother me that God took decades to answer my prayers. I simply praised him for what He had done in His timing.
Now that you know some of my story, you would think that I no longer get stressed when God seems to take His time in responding to my prayers. If anybody knows better by experience, I should be that person. After all, I lived what I’ve just told you.
Still, though, I struggle at times. I have an older sister and a buddy I love like a son for whom I’ve been praying 50+ years and 14+ years, respectively. Every day, I plead with God to save them.
Every day. For years. Decades even. And each day, I learn through my sometimes-weak faith more about waiting on God — and more about me.
1. I’m learning in my waiting that nothing I’ve done or earned can change hearts. I may have a PhD in Evangelism and Church Growth (earned under my supervising professor at that time, Dr. Thom Rainer), and my title may be “Senior Professor of Evangelism and Missions,” but none of that matters right now. Only God can move a heart to turn to Him — and He does so in His time. The meantime as I await God’s response is a learning time for me. If you’re waiting for God to answer a prayer, too, I trust He is teaching you something in your meantime.
2. I’m reminded daily that God’s calendar is not my calendar. What seems like a long time to me is hardly long for an eternal God. He is never hurried nor late, never worried nor uncaring, never unaware of my concerns nor not sovereign over all of them. We wait now, but God controls the calendar and the clock. He answers us at precisely the right time according to His perfect plan, not according to our imperfect one. The bottom line is this: God is faithful and right in all that He does, regardless of His timing. I’m still learning to trust God based on what I do know about Him rather than worry about His timing I don’t know.
3. I’m learning what fasting is all about. John Piper concludes that “Christian fasting, at its root, is the hunger of a homesickness for God.”[i] It is a longing for God to make Himself known more than anything. Again, Piper’s words convict me: “If you don’t feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.”[ii] When I truly want God to do the great work of saving my sister and my friend — so much so that the temporary pleasure of food loses its power — the discipline of fasting makes sense to me. Waiting still hurts, but I can do it prayerfully with hope and anticipation.
4. I’m being stretched to trust God all the way to death. In the musings of a man growing older, I’ve come to realize that I may die with prayers yet unanswered. It’s possible I may go home to Heaven still longing for God to draw my loved ones to Him. I desperately want Him to answer my prayers while I’m here, but He may not — for now. My death, though, would not preclude God’s answering my prayers when I’m already in Heaven. I should be able to die with waiting faith then because I’ve learned to live with waiting faith now. My trust should be both present tense and future tense; that is, it should be “the reality of what we hope for … the evidence of things we cannot see” (Heb 11:1, NLT).
I’ve learned, but I’m still learning when waiting’s hard. How about you? Have you been waiting on God a long time? If so, let us know — our Church Answers family would be honored to join you in prayer.
References:
[i] John Piper, A Hunger for God: Desiring God through Fasting and Prayer. Good News Publishers. Kindle Edition, Kindle loc. 93.
[ii] Piper, Hunger, Kindle loc. 229.
Originally published at Church Answers.
Chuck Lawless currently serves as Professor of Evangelism and Missions and Dean of Graduate Studies at Southeastern Seminary. A conference speaker and author or co-author of more than ten books, including Spiritual Warfare: Biblical Truth for Victory, Discipled Warriors, Putting on the Armor, Mentor, and Spiritual Warfare in the Storyline of Scripture, Dr. Lawless has a strong interest in discipleship and mentoring. You can connect with Dr. Lawless on both Twitter and Facebook.
