Apples of Gold

When my daughters were much younger, if you had walked in at the wrong moment, you might have caught me rather forcefully “asking’ them to complete a task, usually it was either homework or tackling the mountain of clutter in their bedrooms. 

I assure you, our conversation did not start out at this level of intensity! If you had arrived at the initial onset, you would have heard a gentle plea directed at my 3 little “angels” to please clean up a bit. Over the next several hours, and likely an almost unbelievable number of requests, the pitch and timber took on a more compelling tone.

Most of us have felt the ramifications of a heartfelt prayer to be more patient. The route we must travel to acquire our request is often frustrating and tenuous. At some point on the path to patience it is likely that we questioned our sanity at uttering that prayer! 

My husband made an interesting observation in his sermon on Sunday. He mentioned that our prayers do not have an expiration date. It reminded me of prayers I poured out as a young child; asking God to keep me from anything that would dull my love for him and to protect my relationship with him. I have to wonder if some of those prayers are being fulfilled even now, as I navigate the twists and turns in my life as an adult. 

While we often think of prayer having immediate answers, practically speaking, we realize this is often not the case. Sometimes our specific prayers have continued for so long that we feel as if our pacing has worn a trail through dense wilderness. 

Perhaps this is how Zechariah felt the day he entered the temple to perform his priestly duties. His wife, Elizabeth, was barren. Now in his later years, he and Elizabeth had likely filled many bottles with tears, and prayed in agony for a child, more times than you could count. Today, however, was going to be much different:

While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar. Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him. But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John.”

Luke 1:11-13

It is quite possible that at this age, Zechariah and Elizabeth had lost hope that their prayer would ever be answered. In fact, Zechariah’s response indicates that is exactly how he felt.

Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.” Luke 1:18

Was this the answer to years of heartache expressed in tearful faith? It was as though they had expected this answer so long ago that it was now a reluctant resignation. 

While our confessed sin is cast into a sea of forgetfulness, our prayers appear to be cherished and brought into the very presence of God. 

When he took the scroll, the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they held gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. 

Revelation 5:8

There are times that our prayers appear to disappear into thin air. The deepest cries of our hearts seem unanswered and rather than continue to struggle through the pain, we assume God has shut a door, answered “no” by default, or just plain overlooked our earnest plea. Perhaps we would have done well to pray that prayer for patience. 

While certainly there are things that God has said “no”, there are also things that he has said “wait”. Discerning between the two is of utmost importance. 

I will climb up to my watchtower and stand at my guard post. There I will wait to see what the LORD says and how he will answer my complaint. Then the LORD said to me, “Write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct message to others. This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surly take place. It will not be delayed.” 

Habakkuk 2:1-3

We can be certain that God not only hears our prayers, but that he is actively answering them. Sometimes dreams that we considered unfulfillable, goals unattainable, hopes unreachable have simply been stored carefully in the hands of our Lord, waiting for the proper time and place to emerge in perfect fulfillment. 

When the timing is right, you might get just what you asked for!

And the LORD said, “That’s right, and it means that I am watching, and I will certainly carry out all my plans.” Jeremiah 1:12