April 14, 2016
Prayer is an amazing spiritual weapon, and when you wield it, you will receive answers. Situations will improve and circumstances will change.
I am the one who is ultimately in control, not only of your life and circumstances, but of the entire universe. So sometimes even when your prayer is a good prayer‚ I might not answer it exactly the way you think I should, because there are factors in the equation that you don’t know about. But you can trust that I will answer in the best way possible for you‚ and for everyone concerned.
The answer to your prayers has a lot to do with My will. In fact, it has everything to do with My will. If what you want Me to do is according to My will in every way, then you will recognize the answer easily, because it will be exactly what you prayed for. But other times‚ if My will is not exactly the same as what you have prayed for‚ you might not recognize the answer as quickly. I still answer, but some parts of the answer to your prayer, or even the entire answer, might be different from what you expected.
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I love to answer your prayers in the same way that you love to fulfill the requests of the ones you love. When you see their happy and contented faces as they receive what they’ve been asking you for, it creates a feeling of true happiness that comes from giving and seeing others happy. My heart rejoices to see you happy. When you ask and I answer your request and see your joy at having received from Me, My own joy overflows.
I love to answer your prayers because it’s My special way of showing you how much I’m devoted to your care. Until the wonderful day when we are united for eternity, answering your prayers is My way of lovingly and tenderly attending to your every need. Answering your prayers is My way of saying, “I love you, and I am here 24/7 for you. I am fully committed to you, and nothing can separate us—not even two entirely different realms.”
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Take a moment to think about something that has happened in your life, something that you desired and wanted but never thought possible. How did you feel when it materialized? Think about the happiness, joy, and thankfulness you felt.
When you pray, pray in the spirit of jubilation, knowing that I am going to answer your prayer and see your request through to victory, even if the answer to your prayers is different from what you expected.
Praying in jubilation means rejoicing for the answers to prayer and the miracles that I’m already doing, because I start answering your prayers before you even ask, often in ways far beyond what you could fathom or imagine.
Raise your hands in jubilant praise. Thank Me for My bountiful blessings. And most of all‚ show your excitement and ecstatic feelings of having such a powerful weapon in your hand—the power of prayer.
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The realm of prayer is so vast and the answers and resolutions to a problem can be so numerous. Don’t tie your expectations and faith only to the solution that you have in mind. It might not be what I have planned for you.
Consider a man in the woods who encounters a giant tree blocking his path. I could lift him over it, I could tunnel him under it, I could send fire to burn it, I could lift it, I could help him climb over it, I could show him a way around it, or I could even help him to see why it’s not My will for him to cross it in the first place. But if all that the man prays for is a chainsaw—his ideal solution to the problem—he shouldn’t be disappointed if I don’t supply that saw, because maybe My answer is not at all what he was expecting.
Don’t be so stuck on a situation ending up exactly as you think it should that you miss the other options that I wanted to use to bring the ultimate answer to your prayer.
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“What is the reason that God sometimes doesn’t answer my prayers?” you ask. Dear one‚ I always answer your prayers. Sometimes My answer is “yes,” sometimes it’s “no‚” sometimes it’s “wait,” sometimes I will ask you to do something first, but I always answer.
Sometimes I will give you counsel in a certain direction and ask you to follow that first, and then come back to Me for the next step—that’s an answer. Sometimes I will tell you to have patience—that’s an answer. I’m answering people’s prayers all the time, but they often have a preconceived idea about what kind of answer they want, so they think I’m not answering.
When I don’t answer your prayers, that’s also an answer. For example, if a child prays for a truckload of candy, because I know that this is not good for him, I won’t answer that prayer with a truckload of candy. I will answer it by not sending the truck.
Your prayers are answered according to My will and what I know is best for you and everyone concerned. Don’t lose faith and think that there’s something wrong with you or your prayers if it seems like I’m not doing what you asked Me to do. After you have prayed and committed something to Me, trust that I will do what is best for you, even if it means not giving you something or not doing exactly what you asked Me to do, because I know there is a better way.
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Believers get excited when they pray, because they already see the results of their prayers in their minds’ eye. They have already heard the testimonies of answered prayer, and their spirits have already experienced the fruit of My answers. That’s because they know Me in every sense of the word—My unfailing love, care, and goodness.
Praise prayers are like the jubilant band of singers and dancers, leading the believers all the way to victory. They enter My gates with thanksgiving and rejoicing, laying hold on My promises, knowing that I cannot fail, I will not fail, and that victory is on the way!
So lift up your hearts in praise and jubilation to Me, as King David of old did in the Psalms. His love was great and his praises were powerful, and he didn’t hold back. He danced before Me in abandon, demonstrating to the people how joyful and praiseful he was. I dwell in the praises of My people.
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Lift up your arms, laugh, clap, cry tears of joy, sing, dance, shout—do whatever you wish to express your praise as you pray in jubilation and thanks for all that I have done and all that I will yet do.
Rise to the challenge in the face of the “impossible situation” that looms before you, and praise Me for how I’m going to turn it around for good. Praying in this way does your spirit so much good. It puts you in a positive, optimistic, and upbeat frame of mind, which is something you really need when facing a daunting or difficult battle.
Nothing is too hard for Me, and you prove your trust and faith in this promise when you pray a prayer of jubilation to Me.
My joy isn’t necessarily a feeling; it’s often a choice of perspective on a situation. You can pray prayers of jubilation because, while the problem or need you’re praying for may not be the most joyful thing to address, you’re aware of My awesome power‚ the overwhelming love I have for you, and My desire to provide for you and protect you.
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A heart that is filled with jubilation and praise is a heart through which prayer flows naturally and powerfully. When you are praising Me‚ dwelling on My goodness and the results and answers I have given, your faith is strengthened for prayer, and your confidence is bolstered as you know that I can do again what I’ve done before, that there’s more where that came from.
So bring all the jubilation and praise you can into your prayers, and into every aspect of your life, and you can rest assured that in doing so, you are taking positive prayer action, and letting the Spirit work through you and for you to answer your prayers in the ways I know best.
Originally published September 2007. Adapted and republished April 2016.
Read by Jerry Paladino. Music by Michael Dooley.
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