1-2. Why might we feel that Jehovah is not answering our prayers?

 “FIND exquisite delight in Jehovah, and he will grant you the desires of your heart.” (Ps. 37:4) What an amazing promise! But should we expect Jehovah to give us everything we ask for right away? Why might we ask that question? Consider the following scenarios. A single sister prays about attending the School for Kingdom Evangelizers. But several years go by, and she has still not been invited. A young brother asks Jehovah to be relieved of a debilitating disease so that he can serve in the congregation more fully. But his health does not improve. Christian parents pray that their child will stay in the truth. But their child decides to stop serving Jehovah.

² Perhaps you too have asked Jehovah for something, but you have not received it. As a result, you may conclude that Jehovah answers some prayers but not yours. Or you may reason that you must have done something wrong. A sister named Janice b felt that way. She and her husband prayed about their desire to serve at Bethel. She says: “I was convinced that we would be at Bethel in no time.” But months turned into years, and the couple had still not been invited. Janice says: “I felt sad and confused. I wondered what I had done to disappoint Jehovah. I had prayed so specifically for his direction.  Why had he not answered my prayer?”

3. What will we discuss in this article?

³ At times, we may wonder if Jehovah is listening to our prayers. Even some faithful men of old had that concern. (Job 30:20; Ps. 22:2; Hab. 1:2) What can convince you that Jehovah will respond to your prayers? (Ps. 65:2) To help answer that question, we will first need to answer the following: (1) What can we expect from Jehovah? (2) What does Jehovah expect from us? (3) Why may we need to adjust some of our requests?

4. According to Jeremiah 29:12, what does Jehovah promise to do?

⁴ Jehovah promises to listen to our prayers. (Read Jeremiah 29:12.) Our God loves his faithful worshippers, so he will never ignore their prayers. (Ps. 10:17; 37:28) However, this does not mean that he will grant us all our requests. We may have to wait until the new world before we receive some of the things we ask for.

5. What does Jehovah consider when listening to our prayers? Explain.

⁵ Jehovah considers how our requests relate to his overall purpose. (Isa. 55:8, 9) Part of that purpose includes filling the earth with men and women who are joyfully united under his rulership. But Satan claims that humans would be better off ruling themselves. (Gen. 3:1-5) To prove that the Devil’s claim is a lie, Jehovah has allowed humans to govern themselves. Yet, human rule has caused many of the problems we face today. (Eccl. 8:9) We understand that Jehovah will not remove all these problems at this time. If he were to do so, some might conclude that human rule does work, that it is able to solve mankind’s problems.

6. Why do we need to be convinced that Jehovah will always do what is loving and just?

⁶ Jehovah may respond to similar requests in different ways. For example, when King Hezekiah was extremely sick, he begged Jehovah to help him recover. In response, Jehovah healed him. (2 Ki. 20:1-6) On the other hand, when the apostle Paul pleaded with Jehovah to remove his “thorn in the flesh,” possibly a physical ailment, Jehovah did not remove the problem. (2 Cor. 12:7-9) Consider also the example of the apostles James and Peter. They both faced certain death at the hands of King Herod. The congregation prayed for Peter and likely for James too. However, James was put to death, while Peter was miraculously rescued. (Acts 12:1-11) We may wonder, ‘Why did Jehovah save Peter but not James?’ The Bible does not say. c What we can be sure of is that Jehovah’s ways are “never unjust.” (Deut. 32:4) And we know that both Peter and James had Jehovah’s approval. (Rev. 21:14) At times, we may be faced with an outcome we did not expect. But because we trust that Jehovah’s answer to our prayers will always be loving and just, we do not question the way he chooses to answer us.​—Job 33:13.

7. What do we try to avoid, and why?

 ⁷ We try to avoid comparing our situation with that of others. For instance, we may ask Jehovah to help us in a specific way, but our request is not granted. Later, we learn that someone else made a similar request, and Jehovah seemed to have granted it. A sister named Anna had that experience. She prayed that her husband, Matthew, might recover from cancer. At the same time, two elderly Christian sisters were also battling cancer. Anna prayed intensely for Matthew and for the sisters. The sisters recovered, but Matthew passed away. At first, Anna wondered if the sisters got well because Jehovah intervened. And if so, why did he not answer her prayers that her husband get better? Of course, we cannot say why the two sisters recovered. What we do know is that Jehovah has a permanent solution for all our suffering, and he longs to resurrect his friends who have died.​—Job 14:15.

8. (a) According to Isaiah 43:2, how does Jehovah support us? (b) How can prayer help us when we are facing difficult trials? (See the video Prayer Helps Us to Cope.)

⁸ Jehovah will always support us. As our loving Father, Jehovah does not like to see us in pain. (Isa. 63:9) Still, he does not prevent all our trials, which can be likened to rivers or flames. (Read Isaiah 43:2.) However, he does promise to help us “pass through” them. And he will not allow our trials to cause us permanent harm. Jehovah also gives us his powerful holy spirit to help us endure. (Luke 11:13; Phil. 4:13) As a result, we can be confident that we will always have exactly what we need in order to endure and to remain faithful to him. d

9. In line with James 1:6, 7, why do we need to trust that Jehovah will help us?

⁹ Jehovah expects us to trust in him. (Heb. 11:6) At times, our trials may seem insurmountable. We might even begin to doubt whether Jehovah will help us. But the Bible assures us that by God’s power we can “scale a wall.” (Ps. 18:29) So instead of giving in to our doubts, we should pray in full faith, trusting that Jehovah will answer our prayers.​—Read James 1:6, 7.

10. Illustrate how we can act in harmony with our prayers.

¹⁰ Jehovah expects us to act in harmony with our prayers. For example, a brother may ask Jehovah to help him get time off from his secular work so that he can attend a regional convention. How might Jehovah answer that prayer? He might give the brother the courage he needs to approach his employer. But the brother will still need to follow through by making the request. He may need to ask repeatedly. He may even offer to trade shifts with another employee. And, if necessary, he may offer to take the time off without pay.

11. Why should we pray repeatedly about our concerns?

¹¹ Jehovah expects us to pray repeatedly about our concerns. (1 Thess. 5:17) Jesus implied that some of our requests  would not be granted right away. (Luke 11:9) So do not give up! Pray earnestly and repeatedly. (Luke 18:1-7) When we continue praying about a matter, we show Jehovah that our request is not just a passing whim. We also demonstrate our faith in his ability to help us.

12. (a) What is one question we should ask ourselves about our requests, and why? (b) How can we make sure that our prayers show respect for Jehovah? (See the box “ Do My Requests Show Respect for Jehovah?”)

¹² If we do not receive what we asked for in prayer, we might ask ourselves three questions. The first is, ‘Am I praying for the right thing?’ Often, we think that we know what is best for us. But the things we ask for may not benefit us in the long run. If we are praying about a problem, there may be a better solution to the problem than the one we are asking for. And some things we ask for may not be in harmony with Jehovah’s will. (1 John 5:14) For instance, consider the example of the parents mentioned earlier. They had asked Jehovah to keep their child in the truth. That seems like an appropriate request. Yet, Jehovah will not force any of us to serve him. He wants all of us, including our children, to choose to worship him. (Deut. 10:12, 13; 30:19, 20) So the parents could instead ask Jehovah to help them reach their child’s heart so that he will be moved to love Jehovah and to become His friend.​—Prov. 22:6; Eph. 6:4.

13. According to Hebrews 4:16, when will Jehovah help us? Explain.

 ¹³ A second question would be, ‘Is it Jehovah’s time to grant my request?’ We may feel that we need an immediate answer to our prayers. Really, though, Jehovah knows the best time to help. (Read Hebrews 4:16.) When we do not receive what we ask for right away, we may think that Jehovah’s answer is ‘No.’ But his answer could in effect be ‘Not yet.’ For example, think back to the young brother who prayed to be cured of his illness. If Jehovah had miraculously cured him, Satan could have argued that the brother continued serving Jehovah only because he had been healed. (Job 1:9-11; 2:4) Additionally, Jehovah has already set the time to cure all sicknesses. (Isa. 33:24; Rev. 21:3, 4) And until then, we cannot expect miraculous cures. So the brother could ask Jehovah to give him the strength and the peace of mind to endure his illness and to continue serving God faithfully.​—Ps. 29:11.

14. What do you learn from Janice’s experience?

¹⁴ Recall the experience of Janice, who prayed about serving at Bethel. Five years passed before she understood how Jehovah had answered her prayer. She says: “Jehovah used that time to teach me and to refine me. My trust in him needed to grow. My personal study habits needed to improve. And I needed to find inner joy, which is not dependent on my circumstances.” Later, Janice and her husband were invited to serve in the circuit work. Looking back, Janice says: “Jehovah did answer my prayers,  though not in the way I expected. It took me a while to see the beauty of his answer, but I am so grateful to have experienced his love and kindness.”

15. Why may we need to broaden our requests? (See also pictures.)

¹⁵ A third question would be, ‘Should I be praying for something else?’ Although it is good to be specific in prayer, we may be able to discern what Jehovah’s will is for us by making our request broader. Consider the example of the single sister who has been praying about attending the School for Kingdom Evangelizers. She wants to attend the school so that she can serve where the need is greater. So while continuing to pray to be invited to the school, she could also ask Jehovah to help her identify other opportunities to expand her ministry. (Acts 16:9, 10) Then she could act in harmony with that prayer by asking her circuit overseer if a nearby congregation has a need for more pioneers. Or she could write to a branch office to ask about where there is a need for more Kingdom publishers. e

16. Of what can we be convinced?

¹⁶ As we have learned, we can be convinced that Jehovah will answer our prayers in a loving and just way. (Ps. 4:3; Isa. 30:18) Sometimes we may not get the response we expect. But Jehovah will never ignore our prayers. He loves us very much. And he will never abandon us. (Ps. 9:10) So continue to “trust in him at all times,” pouring out your heart to him in prayer.​—Ps. 62:8.