“I am weary with my moaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.”
– Psalm 6:6
Going to the Lord in prayer isn’t like going to the ATM. We don’t just go once, put in our card, punch in our PIN, and instantly receive the answer to our prayers. That certainly happens sometimes and we give thanks when it does. However, Jesus explicitly taught His disciples to pray persistently, never giving up. He commanded us to ask (and keep asking), seek (and keep seeking), and knock (and keep knocking). As children of God, we must wait upon the Lord (He doesn’t wait upon us). We must pray and wait, wait and pray, trusting in the goodness and wisdom of our all-knowing, all-wise, all-good Father in Heaven. When the time is right, God WILL answer with the best possible answer (which may look nothing like what we expect or desire).
Likewise, prayer isn’t always about happy things. The Psalms teach us to be honest with God about both our joys and our sorrows, our highs and our lows, our victories and our struggles. You never need to pretend to be something other than what you are, because God knows your heart and your mind. The Bible teaches us to pour out our hearts in prayer honestly, confident that God hears us and cares for us deeply. As you move forward in this new year, do so in persistent, confident, patient, honest prayer. God IS listening!