“I quit!” says our five-year-old when trying to do his math assignment. Sadly he’s inherited his father’s dislike for math. Do you sometimes look at God’s gift of prayer in a similar way? If you don’t get the answer you like, do you say, “I quit!”?

God answers prayers with no, yes, and wait. But sometimes we pray the equivalent of this: “God, give me patience and give it to me right now!” 

Here’s a thought though. Maybe God has something better in mind for you. Imagine a small child who sees something he wants in the mall, something that was never intended for a child his age. Sure it would be fun, but he would end up hurting himself and making a mess. When the child hears no, he immediately goes into a meltdown, crying, “I thought you loved me?” What the child doesn’t know is that his parents had planned to go to a local toy store to let him pick out a toy to play with at the park they were picnicking at. 

When we pray, God may not give us what we want, but he promises to hear and answer every time. “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear” (Isaiah 65:24). And he always has something better in mind. Trust him. Trust the Father who sent his Son for you! He does love you! He loves math too, so I’ve been told ☺.