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Feb 08, 2019 1912 Jacqueline Vick
Evangelize

Praying with Trust

I have a great prayer intention. Before I offer it up, I check out every angle as if I am purchasing a used car. The tires are sound, because this prayer is absolutely not about me. In fact, it is the most selfless prayer I have ever uttered. It will get great mileage. If answered, this prayer will bring many people happiness, joy, relief, conversion. What is not to love about this intention?

There is a catch. I have forgotten to look under the hood and ask, “But is it God’s will?” There are atheists and anti-Christians who would leap on that question. Aha! If it is a great intention and God does not answer it, it must be because He does not exist. At the very least, He is a mean God, one who would allow children to get cancer.

Since God is love, it would be impossible for Him to be mean, and I have seen proof of His existence in my life. Still, why would God find fault with such a great prayer intention? The answer is because He wants the greater good, or the good of us all.

While I am looking at an isolated need— isolated by the fact that I am human and can only see a very small portion of the big picture—God IS the big picture. He sees not only my limited world-view but the intricate way everything I am looking at touches situations I am not aware of and people’s lives I would not even know to consider.

There was an obvious example in the news, a situation where a good man was under attack by ideologists. It was a crazy situation and one that seems unbelievable in more ways than one. The obvious prayer is for protection for this man, that God help him prevail over his attackers.

What if, through that man’s suffering, God can bring about the conversion of his attackers? Since God cares about every soul, I can see which would be His priority, can you? It is possible that one of those converted souls may become a modern Saint Paul, bringing many people to Jesus.

If you think that means we should not pray or be specific with our prayers, that is not where I am headed. Instead, my example is a call to Trust. I should pray for the man, but at the same time, I should leave it in God’s hands, because God sees the big picture. I offer my prayers with the caveat that His will be done, and I do this with complete trust that He will bring about the greatest good. Usually, it is something far greater than I have asked for.

If you begin to pray in trust your entire life will change. When challenges come, you will be confident that there is a good that will come out of each situation, even if you do not get to see it. You will stress less, and you might even become excited to see how God is answering your prayers in amazing ways that you had not anticipated.

The point is, we do not know God’s will. It is bigger than anything we could imagine. Sometimes our prayer requests fall in line with that will, but sometimes they do not.

If you learn to trust His will and let go of controlling the outcome, then you will discover that every prayer is answered and every answered prayer is for His glory.

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Jacqueline Vick

Jacqueline Vick is a devout Catholic, wife to a wonderful guy, pet parent to a troubled mutt and mystery writer. To know more about her visit www.jacquelinevick.com

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