From the archives of Oral Roberts – First of four parts
A man said to me one day, “Oral Roberts, God has never answered one of my prayers.” I said, “Hold on, now. He always answers. He just doesn’t answer exactly the way we tell Him to answer.”
I firmly believe that if we are sincere in our prayers, God answers us in one of these four ways: “No,” “Wait,” “Do this,” or “Yes.”
When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, He asked God to remove the cup of suffering from Him; that He would not have to go to the Cross. And God said, “No.”
Why? Because God had something greater for His Son Jesus to escape the Cross ― and that was to go through the Cross and be resurrected so that you and I might repent of our sins, call upon God to be saved and be born again by His Holy Spirit. The very purpose for Jesus’ life was to be born, and to shed His blood as the sacrifice for our sins. God may say “no” to your request, but in so doing, He is saying “yes” to your very purpose for living.
The Apostle Paul cried out several times to God, “God, take this thorn in the flesh away from me.” And each time, God didn’t do it Paul’s way. He simply replied, “My grace is sufficient for you.” And Paul moved forward in his life, saying, “In my weakness am I made strong.” He plowed through what seemed to be a “no” answer from God and he found God’s greater grace.
If you feel God is saying “no” or there seems to be no answer, or you feel you are “on hold” today, consider that He has something vital and important for you to work out in your life, and through your life. And just because it’s not your answer, be expecting His answer. His answer is always the best answer.
