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Unanswered
Prayers
 by
Tracie Ann Robinson
How
many times have you prayed for something to happen
in your life?
You
prayed that a great job opportunity would work out.
You prayed that the man or woman in your life would
be "the one". Some people even pray to win
the lottery, saying it would enrich their
lives.
You
may have even bargained that if God answered your
prayer you?d sacrifice or pledge something. You?d
attend church faithfully; you?d treat your fellow
mankind with appreciation and compassion. You?d
never ask for anything again. The list could go on
and on.
Country music
star, Garth Brooks, sings a song titled, Unanswered Prayers,
which I?m moved by every time I hear it. He sings a story of
meeting his old high school flame at a hometown football game
with his wife. During the encounter he realizes that had his
teen-aged prayer to "make her my own for all time"
been answered he?d have missed out on the true gifts in his
life.
The story is
about a man who discovers how God?s plan doesn?t
necessarily include all our prayer requests. It represents
that some of God?s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. As
the lyrics say "I guess the good Lord knows what he?s
doing after all".
The song says
to thank God for unanswered prayers.
If you think
back on some of the prayers you?ve asked along your journey
I?m sure you can come up with at least one that you are
grateful went unanswered.
I will admit
that some of my prayer requests were, in hindsight, not
thought out too well and often desperate. Yet I was quite
passionate and full of conviction at the time.
To share a
real example -- I prayed for years, literally, that God would
make my marriage right and bring relief to my frustration.
That prayer went unanswered. Now I understand that was the
path intended for me. I never would have evolved to who I am
today nor would I appreciate the individual I've rediscovered
or the true gifts in my life.
Learning from
what?s behind us and never knowing what?s in store for our
future makes for an unknown. I?ve replaced the craving to
define the "unknown" with a desire to experience and
benefit from the self-evolution that I trust will
unveil.
The true
wisdom to be gained from an unanswered prayer isn't
necessarily the content of the prayer. I think it's more about
appreciating and recognizing the blessings we do have in our
lives.
If we adjust
our "need to know" and begin trusting God?s plan
we might consider it exciting to not know what our future
holds. Which prayers God will answer and equally important,
which ones will go unanswered and how will that shape our
destiny. "I guess the good Lord knows what he?s doing
after all."
*****
This article
is dedicated to my family. I?ve truly been blessed with the
gift of a family that loves and supports me. I can put into
words many feelings, however, I cannot do justice to the true
feelings I have for each and every one of you.
My newfound
appreciation for each of you is a direct result of unanswered
prayers and a year filled with lots of heartache and
frustration. Through this experience I?ve come to appreciate
the really important things in my life and the value each of
you holds for me. There is nothing stronger or more important
than a family that stands by one another, loves one another,
respecting our individual differences -- celebrating our
personal achievements and introspective growth.
 Recommended
book:
"Handle
with Prayer?
by Alan Cohen
Info/Order book
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