Surviving Supplications

My father wrote the following for the church bulletin this week. I couldn't help posting it ...

It is interesting that Scripture doesn’t say, “Ask without ceasing.” But I’m afraid a great many read it that way. So, how do we survive when our supplications seem to go unheard?

I had spent a couple of wonderful days with two of my grandsons recently. Then I took them and their mother to Searcy where their father was leading a seminar for the Physical Sciences Department. They would be going home to Alabama soon and I needed to return to Russellville. But parting was difficult. The seven-year-old wept on my shoulder and begged me not to go. The four-year-old sat on my knee and kept saying, “Please, Papa. Please don’t go. Please, Papa.” But Papa had to go. As I walked down the hall of the Science Building I heard the voice pleading after me, echoing mournfully, praying, “Please, Papa. Please don’t go. Please, Papa.” And the sobs of the other added accompaniment. Broken hearts all around.

How will those boys survive their unanswered supplications? They will continue to love their Papa anyway, and be glad to see him on the next visit. And they will learn over time that we all have responsibilities to meet, and that there are bigger issues in life than our desires at the moment.

Prayer is really that simple. It always seems to be a hot topic because of misunderstandings, and people have been known to lose faith over “unanswered prayer” (read that, “not getting my way.”) But the faithful continue to love God anyway and rejoice in His presence, and learn over time that God is working all things together for our good even if we don’t understand it, and that there are bigger issues than my desires at the moment.

Three other grandchildren are in Iowa. My daughter is pregnant with her fourth. Already pregnant, mind you. One baby, not twins. And the two oldest are praying about the sex of the new baby. One is praying for a boy. The other is praying for a girl. Do we ever put God in untenable positions? Do we ever expect the unreasonable? Do we ever pray for rain when our neighbor is praying for sunshine? What’s God to do?

Knowing that God’s will is that all men have the free will to determine for themselves what they will believe and do, do we ever pray that God will override that free will and save them anyway? Knowing that it is “appointed unto men once to die”, do we ever pray for them to live beyond reasonable expectations?

Do we ever lose faith because we don’t have enough faith that God is in control, that He loves us, and that He knows best? My grandkids don’t. I’m always their Papa. They always love me. And they don’t ever want me to leave. “A little child shall lead them.” So.....

Dear God. You will always be my Father. I will always love you. And I don’t ever want You to leave.