STUDY ARTICLE 49
Jehovah Go Answer My Prayer?
“Una go call me and come and pray to me, and I go listen to una.”—JER. 29:12.
SONG 41 Abeg Jehovah, Hear My Prayer
WETIN WE GO LEARN? a
1-2. Wetin fit happen wey fit make us feel say Jehovah no de answer our prayer?
“MAKE you de happy because of Jehovah, and e go give you wetin your heart want.” (Ps. 37:4) This na better promise! But this one mean say if we pray for something, Jehovah go do-am at once? Why that question dey important? See some example. One sister pray to Jehovah say make e help-am, so that them go invite-am to School for Kingdom Evangelizers. But many years pass them no invite-am. One young brother wey get serious sickness pray to Jehovah make e help-am, so that e go well and fit do more for congregation. But the sickness no gree go. One papa and mama pray make Jehovah keep their pikin for the truth, but when the pikin grow, e no gree serve Jehovah.
2 Even you fit don beg Jehovah something, but you never get-am. This one fit make you feel say Jehovah de answer some people prayer, but e no answer your own. Or you fit begin think say na because you don sin. One sister wey im name na Janice b feel like that. The sister and im husband pray to Jehovah say them go like to work for Bethel. E talk say: “I be dey sure say e no go tey before them go invite us for Bethel.” But after many years, them no call Sister Janice and im husband. So e talk say: “E pain me well-well and I just confuse. I come de wonder wetin I don do, wey vex Jehovah. I don beg-am say I really want go Bethel, but I no know why e no answer my prayer.”
3. Wetin we go talk about for this article?
3 Sometimes, we fit de wonder if Jehovah de even hear us when we de pray to-am. Even some servants of Jehovah for Bible time feel like that. (Job 30:20; Ps. 22:2; Hab. 1:2) Wetin fit help you dey sure say Jehovah go answer your prayer? (Ps. 65:2) To fit answer this question, we go first answer this ones. (1) Wetin we fit expect from Jehovah when we pray? (2) Wetin Jehovah want make we do? (3) Sometimes, why we need to change wetin we de pray for?
WETIN WE FIT EXPECT FROM JEHOVAH WHEN WE PRAY?
4. For Jeremiah 29:12, wetin Jehovah promise say e go do?
4 Jehovah promise us say e go hear our prayer. (Read Jeremiah 29:12.) Jehovah love us because we de worship-am, so e go always hear our prayer. (Ps. 10:17; 37:28) But this one no mean say e go give us everything wey we pray for. We fit need to wait until Paradise come, before we get some of the things wey we de pray for.
5. Wetin Jehovah de think about before e answer our prayer? Explain.
5 Before Jehovah answer our prayer, e go first check how wetin we pray for, connect with wetin e get for mind. (Isa. 55:8, 9) One of the things wey e want na make people for this earth de worship-am and de happy to obey-am as their King. But Satan talk say people go fit rule theirself and still de happy. (Gen. 3:1-5) To show say wetin Satan talk na lie, Jehovah allow people rule theirself. And the way people de rule don cause plenty problem wey we de face today. (Eccl. 8:9) We know say na when God Kingdom come all our problem go end. If God de comot the problem for this world now, e go be like say wetin Satan talk na true, say people go fit really rule theirself and de happy.
6. Why we always need to get-am for mind say Jehovah love us well-well and say e no de ever do partial?
6 The same prayer wey different people pray, Jehovah fit answer-am for different-different way. For example, when King Hezekiah de sick, e beg Jehovah say make e help-am so that e go well. Wetin Jehovah do? E heal-am. (2 Ki. 20:1-6) But when apostle Paul beg Jehovah say make e comot wetin e call “chuku-chuku” for im body, wey fit be sickness, Jehovah no comot the problem. (2 Cor. 12:7-9) Apostle James and Peter na another example. King Herod be want kill the two of them. Brothers and sisters pray make Jehovah save Peter and them go don still pray make e save James. Herod kill James, but Jehovah use one angel save Peter. (Acts 12:1-11) We fit de ask ourself say, ‘Why Jehovah save Peter but e allow them kill James?’ Bible no tell us why. c One thing wey we believe with all our heart be say Jehovah “no de ever do partial.” (Deut. 32:4) And we know say the two of them worship Jehovah well, and Jehovah love them. (Rev. 21:14) Sometimes, no be the way we want, Jehovah de answer our prayer. But because we dey sure say Jehovah love us well-well and say e no de ever do partial, we no go complain about how Jehovah choose to answer our prayer.—Job 33:13.
7. Wetin we no suppose do, and why?
7 E dey important make we no de compare our condition with other people own. For example, we fit pray for something, but we no get-am. After, we come hear say another person pray for that same thing, and e be like say Jehovah answer im prayer. Na so e happen to one sister wey im name na Anna. When im husband and two other sisters get cancer, Sister Anna pray make Jehovah help im husband and the two sisters. The two sisters well, but im husband die. Sister Anna come ask imself say, ‘Na Jehovah help the two sisters make them well? And if na Jehovah, why e no help my husband make e well?’ The truth be say we no know how the two sisters take well. But wetin we know be say, Jehovah go end all our problem, and e de hungry-am to bring all im friends wey don die, back to life.—Job 14:15.
8. (a) As Isaiah 43:2, talk, how Jehovah take de help us? (b) How prayer fit help us when we de face serious problem? (Watch the video, Prayer De Help Us Endure When We De Face Problems.)
8 Jehovah go always support us. Because Jehovah love us well-well, e no de like-am when we de suffer. (Isa. 63:9) But no be all problem e de stop make e no affect us. (Read Isaiah 43:2.) E don promise us say e go help us when we de face all this problem. And no matter wetin our problem be, e go make sure say we go fit continue to worship-am and hold-am tight. Jehovah still de give us im holy spirit wey de help us fit endure. (Luke 11:13; Phil. 4:13) Because of this one, we dey sure say Jehovah go always give us wetin we need to fit endure and continue to serve-am well. d
WETIN JEHOVAH WANT MAKE WE DO?
9. With wetin James 1:6, 7 talk, why we need to trust Jehovah say e go help us?
9 Jehovah want make we trust-am. (Heb. 11:6) Sometimes, we fit feel say our problem big pass us. We fit even begin doubt say Jehovah go help us. But Bible give us hope say God go give us power, to fit do wetin we feel say e pass our power. (Ps. 18:29) So instead make we de doubt, make we pray to Jehovah, put faith for-am, and trust-am say e go answer us.—Read James 1:6, 7.
10. Give example of wetin we fit do make Jehovah answer our prayer.
10 Jehovah want make we do wetin we fit do to make our prayer work. For example, imagine say you de work for somebody or company, and you need to take time from work to fit go convention. So you pray to Jehovah make e help you. How e fit answer your prayer? E fit give you strong mind to fit go meet your oga and tell-am wetin you want. But you go still need to do somethings like, to go meet your oga and tell-am wetin you need. E fit be say you go need to go meet-am plenty time. And you fit even arrange with your workmate make e do your work when you go the convention, so that you go do im own another day. Even self, you fit tell your oga say e fit comot the money for the day wey you no work, from your salary.
11. Why e good make we pray plenty time when we get problem?
11 Jehovah want make we pray to-am plenty times about our problem. (1 Thess. 5:17) Wetin Jesus talk show say no be everything wey we pray for Jehovah go do for us at once. (Luke 11:9) So, make you no tire to de beg Jehovah. Make you pray well-well and plenty times. (Luke 18:1-7) When we continue to pray to Jehovah about something, e mean say we really need the thing. And e still de show say we get faith say Jehovah get power to help us.
WHY WE FIT NEED TO CHANGE WETIN WE DE PRAY FOR?
12. (a) Which question we suppose ask ourself about our prayer, and why? (b) How we fit show say we respect Jehovah when we de pray to-am? (Check the box “ My Prayer De Show Say I Respect Jehovah?”)
12 If we no get wetin we de pray for, we fit ask ourself this questions. The first one na, ‘I de pray for the correct thing?’ Plenty times, we de think say we know wetin better pass for us. But wetin we de pray for, fit no be the best thing for us. When we pray and tell Jehovah how we want make e solve our problem, e fit be say the one wey Jehovah get for mind, better pass the way we want make e answer-am. And some things wey we pray for, fit no be wetin Jehovah want. (1 John 5:14) For example, make we talk about the papa and mama wey we talk about before. Them beg Jehovah make e keep their pikin for the truth. You think say this na the correct thing to pray for? Your answer fit be yes! But the truth be say, Jehovah no go force anybody to worship-am. E want make all of us, even our pikin them, choose by ourself to worship-am. (Deut. 10:12, 13; 30:19, 20) So the correct thing wey them suppose pray for na, make Jehovah help them fit teach their pikin the way e go touch im heart and make-am love Jehovah and become Im friend.—Prov. 22:6; Eph. 6:4.
13. As e dey for Hebrews 4:16, when Jehovah go help us? Explain.
13 The second question na, ‘This na correct time for Jehovah to answer my prayer?’ When we pray, we fit de feel say we need answer to our prayer now-now-now. But na Jehovah know the best time to help us. (Read Hebrews 4:16.) And if we no get wetin we pray for when we de expect-am, we go come de feel say Jehovah answer to our prayer na ‘No.’ But e fit be say im answer na, ‘Wait small.’ For example, you remember that young brother, wey pray make Jehovah help-am make e well? If to say Jehovah just heal-am as e pray, Satan fit challenge Jehovah say the only reason the young brother continue to worship-am na because e heal-am. (Job 1:9-11; 2:4) Another thing be say, Jehovah don set the time wey e go remove all sickness. (Isa. 33:24; Rev. 21:3, 4) Until that time, we no go expect say Jehovah go heal us when we de sick. So, the young brother fit pray make Jehovah give-am power and peace of mind, to fit endure the sickness and continue to worship-am well.—Ps. 29:11.
14. Wetin you learn from Janice story?
14 Remember Sister Janice wey pray say make Jehovah help e and im husband, so that them go call them come Bethel. Na after five years e understand how Jehovah answer im prayer. E talk say: “Jehovah use that time teach me plenty things wey help me better pass the way I be before. I use that time learn to trust Jehovah more, and I learn how to study Bible more. I still learn say I fit de happy as I de worship Jehovah, no matter where I dey.” And later, them make im husband circuit overseer. Sister Janice still talk say: “Jehovah answer my prayer even though say no be the way I expect-am. Na after sometime I see say the way Jehovah answer my prayer really make sense. And I really happy for the way Jehovah show us love and bless us.”
If you feel say Jehovah never answer your prayer for some particular thing, try pray for another thing (Check paragraph 15) f
15. Why e good sometimes when we pray, to allow Jehovah choose wetin good for us? (Still check the pictures.)
15 The third question na, ‘Make I change wetin I de pray for?’ Na true say sometimes, we fit pray to Jehovah say make e give us some particular thing. But some other time, e good make we just tell Jehovah wetin dey our mind and allow-am choose for us. This one go help us know wetin Jehovah get for mind for us. Make we see the example of one sister wey never marry, wey pray to Jehovah say e go like attend School for Kingdom Evangelizers. E want go the school so that e go fit go support congregation wey need more people to preach. As the sister continue to pray make them invite-am, e fit still pray to Jehovah make e help-am see other ways, wey e fit do more for Im organization. (Acts 16:9, 10) Then, e fit go meet circuit overseer and ask-am if e know any congregation wey need more pioneer? Or, e fit write letter to branch office and ask for congregation wey need more people to preach. e
16. Wetin we dey sure say Jehovah go do when we pray?
16 As we don learn from this article, we fit dey sure say Jehovah go answer our prayer for the best way and for the correct time. (Ps. 4:3; Isa. 30:18) Sometimes, the answer for our prayer fit no be wetin we de expect. But, wetin we know be say, Jehovah no go ever push our prayer for one corner. E love us well-well and e no go ever leave us. (Ps. 9:10) So, continue to “trust [Jehovah] everytime,” and de tell-am everything wey dey your mind.—Ps. 62:8
SONG 43 Prayer to Thank Jehovah
a This article go help us dey sure say Jehovah go always answer our prayer, for the best way and for the correct time.
b We change some names.
c Check the article “You Trust the Way Jehovah De Do Things?” for February 2022 Watchtower, pars. 3-6.
d To learn more about how Jehovah de help us endure when we de face problem, watch the video; Prayer De Help Us Endure When We De Face Problems, for jw.org.
e If you want know wetin you fit do to fit serve for another branch territory, check the book; Organized to Do Jehovah’s Will, chap. 10, pars. 6-9.
f OTHER THINGS ABOUT THE PICTURE: Two sisters de pray before them fill form for School for Kingdom Evangelizers. Later, them invite one of them, but them no invite the other one. Instead for the sister wey them no invite to de vex, e pray to Jehovah say make e help-am fit see other ways, wey e fit still do more for Jehovah organization. Then, the sister write letter to branch office say e ready to go support any congregation wey need more people to preach.
