Question:  Should we give thanks for unanswered prayers?

Answer:  Yes, give thanks to God because He always answers our prayers.  Remember, His answer may be yes, no, or not yet, but He always answers.  We are reminded of this in       1 John 5:14-15, ” Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” (NKJV)  Note that what we pray for must still go along with God’s will for our lives.  God’s will and our desires may not match.  That said, God very much wants us to continue to pray to Him for the things we feel we want or need.  We usually enthusiastically give God thanks when He answers our prayers with a “yes.”  Of course, when we do this, we are doing the right thing.  However, it’s very important to remind ourselves to give thanks even when God’s answer is “no.”  Believers know that while we may think we know what is best for us, God truly knows what’s best for us in every situation of our lives.  We must also know that our ways are not necessarily His ways, and our preferred timing for things to happen, is not always His timing for things to happen.
Here are two examples of God knowing what’s best for us better than we do.  Consider the twenty-something young lady who has a strong  desire to get married and even has her eyes set on the exact young man she considers her perfect match.  He’s handsome, successful in his career, and regularly attends church.  She prays to God to bless her to get married to this fine young man.  After the two have dated for a while, the young man seems to lose interest in her and goes off to eventually marry someone else.  Our young lady is crushed, and she doesn’t understand why God didn’t answer her prayer with a “yes.”   Twenty years later, we find our young lady happily married to a wonderful man she first met in her thirties.  She is surprised to learn that the young man she prayed to marry decades earlier is now on his third divorce.  According to his ex-wives, he had been a terrible husband.  Our lady is now very happy God answered “no” to her earlier prayer.
A different example:   a middle-aged man prays to God to get a new career position that he thinks is just right for him.  He’d be working for a great company and making a much larger salary than he’s making in his current position — something especially important as he starts to get closer to retirement age.   However, this man watches in disbelief as someone else gets that prized position.  He can’t understand what he had done so wrong that God would not reward him with the job of his heart’s desire.  Later, it turns out the person taking his dream job lasts less than a year.  The company down-sizes and that position gets eliminated.  That person is now unemployed.  Our middle-aged man is happy he still had his job.  He’s also very happy that God answered his earlier prayer with a “no.”
If we are being really honest with ourselves,  most of us can probably recall times in our lives when we were very upset when God said “no” to us.  Likewise, as in these two examples, we can look back at one or more of these “no’s” and be thankful.  We now shudder at the thought of how things would be if God’s answer had been “yes.”  As believers, we know that we will never understand in this lifetime, why God answers us in the ways He does.  Also, God knows, understands, and cares when we are hurt and disappointed when He doesn’t answer all of our prayers with a “yes.”  He wants us to trust that He knows what is best and take comfort in this knowledge.  We must pray to have stronger faith and trust in God.  Then, we will be spiritually equipped for those times when we need to be thankful for NOT getting what we wanted!

(Reposted from my November 21, 2013 Blog Post)

Follow me on Twitter: @ValClarksPlace

Helpful Links:
Focus on the Family    http://www.focusonthefamily.com
Crown Financial Ministries   http://www.crown.org
The Christian Broadcasting Network   http://www.cbn.com
World Magazine        http://www.worldmag.com

Question: After hearing about so many scary events happening in the world, I’m almost afraid to leave my house. Help!

Answer: From natural disasters like hurricanes and earthquakes destroying cities to increasing local crime and terrorist attacks, there’s plenty of news to cause fear.  But dangerous events  and crimes, while seeming to be on the rise, are actually nothing new.  Jesus told His disciples to expect various types of troubling events.  In Matthew 24: 6-7, Jesus says, “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.” ( NKJV )

Our God IS an awesome God!  He wants us to remember that He knows that Satan spreads evil in the world.  God knows there are many things that make us fearful. But, as the Apostle Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”  As Christians, we are to put our faith and trust in God.  We are to pray to God to protect us wherever we go. And, pray for wisdom to know when we should stay where we are and not go in order to avoid danger.

If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, asked Him to forgive your sins, and repented of your sins, you know your life is now in the hands of Jesus. He has empowered you with His Holy Spirit to guide and protect you.  He will keep you in His loving care until He decides to call you home to heaven.  Until that time comes, God wants us to continue to live our lives and to live our lives in the ways that please Him.

Therefore, you should continue to enjoy life with your family and friends.  Enjoy being the hands and feet of Jesus by helping those in need. Enjoy doing all you can to show God’s love to others…especially to those who are not yet Believers!  Pray for wisdom to know when and how to avoid dangerous situations.  But do not make yourself a slave to the fears caused by that “thief,” the devil.  Remember the words of Jesus found in John 10:10, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Amen!

So, go out and enjoy that abundant life God has planned for you!

[Re-posted from October 2017]

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Question: My religion professor says that there are many ways to heaven. Is this true?

Answer: No.  What your professor said is not true! There is only one way to Heaven and that way is through Jesus Christ.  Jesus Himself said in John 14: 6, ” …I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (NKJV)  Jesus made this clear. And, Jesus does not lie!

However, we are regularly fed spiritual lies by some of the people around us. Sometimes they tell us falsehoods out of their own ignorance.  Other times, people know that what they are telling you is not true.  Satan uses people to tell lies that would lead others away from God’s truth. In fact, Jesus says that Satan is the father of lies. (John 8:44)  He lies to keep people in the bondage of sin.

But by reading and studying God’s Holy Word, we can break free from Satan’s grip.  John 8:32 says,  “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  Verse 36 goes on to say, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”

Therefore to be free we must first accept God’s only Son Jesus Christ as our One and only Lord and Savior. We must accept that He saved us from eternal separation from God in Heaven. He took  the punishment of death on the cross that we deserved for our sins. We must ask for forgiveness and repent of our sins.

In doing this, we can pray that God’s Holy Spirit will give us discernment to recognize truth from lies. For example, when someone comes to us saying their message is from God, yet their actions go against God’s teachings, we can remember 1 John 2:4.  “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”

So, when we hear people say anything that goes against God’s Word, we know they are telling lies.  Even when these people come across as very likeable, intelligent, and caring, we must test what they are saying. For example, are they lying by telling people that they don’t need to be accountable to God for their actions – that they can just do whatever seems right in their own eyes? If so, they are liars!

Especially beware if what they say denies the unbreakable bond between God the Father and His Son.  In fact, 1 John 2: 22 – 23, puts it this way:  “Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”

So, don’t be deceived by the liars. Seek God’s truth. Pray to learn to discern!

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Question: My pastor is always preaching about sin. Should I find a new church where the messages are more positive?

Answer: You should find a new church if your current church is not presenting the entire Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! That means talking about sin and talking about God’s love.  If you don’t clearly get the message that we are all sinners in need of a Savior and that the wages for our sin is death, you  haven’t gotten the whole word of God!

Jesus says in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” ( NKJV ) Here we learn of God’s great love for us. But, we also learn that if we do not accept His Son (Jesus Christ) as the One who saved us by dying on the Cross for our sins, we will perish.

Throughout the Bible, we are presented with this truth. Our sin separates us from a holy God, keeps us out of heaven, and brings death. That’s the bad news.  We need to hear this message in our church regularly so that church newcomers will know this and others will remember this truth.

But the church must regularly tell the positive message – the Good News.  God loves us – so much so that He sent His only Son to take the punishment we deserve and die for our sins.  We only need to repent and accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior!  We need to ask Jesus to forgive our sins and live our lives as we are taught in God’s Holy Word!

The reality is, however, that many people like hearing about God’s love, but they don’t want to hear that their sins have very negative consequences.  They want to live their lives by their own rules instead of by the rules of God.  They want to determine what is right and wrong instead of admitting that only God says what is right and what is wrong!

Therefore, they move from church to church trying to find one that will only tell them what they want to hear. The Apostle Paul warns in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”

So, make sure your church is giving you the full message of God’s Word.  Make sure your church leaders are telling you what God wants you to hear and not what you may want to hear to feel comfortable in your sin.  When this is done as God desires, you should feel uplifted and encouraged by God’s love instead of beaten down and hopeless!

Desire to hear all of God’s truth! Don’t just be left with itching ears!

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Question:  Is it just me, or does it seem that dads are often portrayed negatively by today’s media?

Answer:  I agree.  Too many of the father characters we see in the media come across as either incompetent, uncaring, or buffoons.  By contrast, you rarely see the mothers presented this way.  Even the children can come across as having more sense than their dads.  For example, have you seen the commercial in which the mom walks into the house to find her husband dipping their son’s feet in paste to make socks?  Some of the paste is still dripping from the socks.  Obviously, the child looks very weighted down and uncomfortable.  The dad tries to explain that he is trying to make socks that have a better fit.  Of course, the mom looks at him like he is crazy.  If the roles were reversed in these scenarios and the dads were looking at the moms like they were incompetent idiots, the feminist groups would be protesting in outrage against such degrading images.

Additionally,  I don’t think this incompetent father trend helps in these days of increasingly troubled families.  My hope is that the father images become more positive or at least, balanced out.  People are, indeed, influenced by what they see on TV, so it does matter what is shown.  We need to do all we can to strengthen our families.  We need to start by promoting good, strong Christian fathers!

God’s Word makes it clear that fathers are very important to the family.  In fact, the father in the family serves as a symbol of our Heavenly Father, God.   We find an example of this in Matthew 7:9-11, “Or what man… if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone…   If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give  good things  to those who ask Him!” (NKJV)  God teaches this lesson about how He provides for us by using the example of how the father in the family will provide for his children.

Additionally, Jesus reminds us of the importance we are to place on both parents in Matthew 15:4, “For God commanded, saying, ‘Honor your father and your mother…'” (NKJV)  In the book of Proverbs, we find the father in the family often being the one who is teaching his children how they are to live a godly life.  For example, in Proverbs 4:1, 11, it says, “Hear, my children, the instruction of a father… I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths.” (NKJV) Here, the Bible tells us that God expects fathers to teach their children how to live godly lives.

However, it’s important to note that for a father to  do all of this teaching, he must first be an active presence in his children’s lives.  Above all, the father must be a godly man, himself, in order to set this example for his household.  Sadly, too many fathers have abandoned the role God intended for them to have in the family.  Today, there are far too many children being born out-of-wedlock.  Too many fathers are not providing the spiritual support or financial support their children really need.  Too many are making babies with women who they are not willing to marry.

On the other hand, there are also too many fathers who, while married to their children’s mother, are present in body only.  They live in the same house as their kids, but they are not active in their care.  They don’t take the time to really talk to their children, teach their children, or take them to church.  They leave all of this care to the mothers.  As a result, we have an ever-increasing amount of  children seeking father figures through gangs, young girls becoming sexually active to seek “love,” and more young people going to prison.

God did not intend for mothers to raise children alone – even though many women have successfully done this.   God wants children to be raised in a stable home with their father married to their mother.  Most importantly, He wants the whole family to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and live their lives to please God!

Thank God for all the men who are good godly fathers to their children!

Follow me on Twitter: @ValClarksPlace

Question: Is my friend right when he says that Christians should not take the Bible as the inerrant word of God?

Answer: No, your friend is not right! If anyone says that they believe in the God of the Bible, but don’t believe the Bible is the word of God, they are being deceived.  “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” ( 1 Timothy 3: 16-17 NKJV)

Satan wants us to doubt God and not follow God’s teachings in the Bible. The devil’s tactic of deception is not new. He started deceiving mankind all the way back in the beginning in the Garden of Eden. Genesis Chapter 3 tells how the serpent tried to make Eve doubt God’s word and disobey God’s instruction to not eat the fruit of the tree “in the midst of the garden.” Eve told him that God said, “You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.” (v.3)

“And the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.'” (vs.4-5)  Eve fell for the devil’s deceptive words.  She ate of the fruit and gave some to Adam. They both disobeyed God! All three, Adam, Eve, and the serpent, received God’s punishment!

Likewise, today, Satan continues to try to deceive us into thinking that we don’t need to live our lives according to God’s  Holy Word.  For example, he tries to deceive us when we are dealing with troubles in our personal relationships with family and friends. Satan wants us to fight against each other and not get along.  But, God wants us to show love to one another, pray for each other, and forgive each other. We should treat each other the way God’s Word teaches us to treat each other.

Also, when we face physical and mental illnesses or addictions, Satan wants to deceive us into losing hope for getting better. But God tells us to put our hope and trust in Him. We are to pray and believe in Him for healing. “…And by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)

Therefore, we must recognize when Satan is trying to deceive us. “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things (our sins) the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.” (Ephesians 5:6)  To be protected against Satan’s deceptions, we must “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (Ephesians 6:11)  We must pray and study God’s Word.  Ephesians chapter 6 spells this out for us. We need the “sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (v.17b)

Most importantly, we must make sure we “take the helmet of salvation.” (Ephesians 6:17a)  To do this, we must understand that our sins separate us from a Holy God.  But God’s love for us led Him to send His only Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for our sins. Jesus willingly took the punishment for our sins that we deserved.  He rose again on the third day and sits at the right hand of God.  By accepting Jesus as our one and only Savior, we have everlasting life with God.  His Holy Spirit will live in us to help us live for God. 

And, His Holy Spirit will help us resist Satan’s deceptions.  Amen! 

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Question: Once again, just before my husband and I tried to go out for a “date” night, we got into an argument over something minor and it ruined the whole evening.  How do we stop this depressing pattern?

Answer:  First you and your husband should discuss the fact that this pattern of behavior happens.  Then, pray together that God would guide your conversations with each other and bless you to communicate with each other in a way that would be pleasing to Him.  Seek out good Christian resources to help you with this like the ones found on the Focus on the Family web site, www.focusonthefamily.com.   Bottom line: you’ve got to stop letting the devil steal your joy!

You see, having the devil interfere in your life trying to cause trouble is nothing new.  Satan works to cause us trouble.  He even tried to cause trouble for Jesus Christ, Himself.  Matthew 4:10 tells of the time when Satan tried to tempt Jesus to serve him instead of serving God. Satan took Jesus up on a high mountain to show Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. Satan promised to give Jesus all the kingdoms if Jesus would worship him.  But Jesus said, “Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'” ( NKJV)  Like Jesus, we too should be ready to speak the power of the Holy Word against the devil when we see he is trying to disrupt our lives.

There will be other times when we believe we are following God’s plan for our lives and Satan will try to get us off track.  He may even do this by using someone in our lives we trust to try to derail us.  He attempted this against Jesus.  When the time came for Jesus to be crucified — to take the punishment in our place that we deserved for our sins — He began to explain to His disciples what was going to happen.  That’s when His disciple Peter, “took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to you!'” But Jesus recognized these words of the devil speaking through Peter.  So Jesus pushed back by saying to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but of the things of men.” (Matthew 16:23)  Again, like Jesus, we must be on guard against sinful advice even from those we consider friends.  We must understand that it is the devil who is trying to use them to pull us away from God.

Therefore, when you can sense, for example, that an unhealthy argument is coming on between you and that other person — be it a spouse, child, parent, friend, or even a stranger — be on guard.  Recognize this for what it really is, the work of the devil trying to destroy the joy of your relationship.  Stop and pray to God to give you the right words to say.  And, remember Ephesians 4:26-27, “‘Be angry, and do not sin,’ do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.”  Remember, Satan wants to destroy our positive relationships and cause all kinds of trouble in our lives because he is evil.  He wants us to be miserable and defeated just like him.

Above all, Satan wants to stop you from accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, from joyfully living your life to please God, and from having everlasting life in Heaven.  Don’t let him do it!  Accept Jesus Christ as your one and only Savior and ask Him to forgive you of your sins. Turn away from your life of sin and start enjoying the blessed life God wants for you.

Jesus wants us to take comfort in His Words from John 10:10.  “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”  Take comfort in His words and stop letting the devil steal your joy!

Re-posted from June 4, 2016

Follow me on Twitter: @ValClarksPlace