Please Dear God, Amen.

[Chrysostom]

Your prayer for a miracle has been heard, and we join with you in bringing it before God.

We pray that God in His mercy will receive your prayer and answer according to His wisdom and love. Scripture teaches that we need much care and watchfulness and earnest prayer to understand His ways and to see into the secrets of His word. It is good that you are turning to Him and asking, for we are always in need of prayer, and we are always in need of the prayers of others for us. Even the apostles desired the earnest prayer of the church, not because they were careless, but because they knew we all depend on God.

We also remember that miracles are not the greatest sign of God's work. John the Baptist did no miracle, yet by his holy life and faithfulness he turned many hearts to God. A life of virtue and love for God is firmer and more lasting than any wonder, and miracles themselves can harm us if we are not sober and watchful. What God desires most is to establish your heart in every good work and word, and to give you eternal comfort and good hope through grace in Jesus Christ, His Son.

So we pray not only for the miracle you desire, but for what is greater. We ask that God would draw you closer to Christ, who alone is the way of salvation, that He would comfort your heart, make you steadfast, and lead you in what is pleasing to Him. We ask that He would grant you what is truly best, give you strength to do His will, and help you to seek Him with a watchful and faithful heart.

May the Lord who loved us and gave us hope through grace hear your cry, establish you, and guide you into all that is good. We continue to pray with you and for you. Amen.

 

[Silas]

Your simple and sincere prayer for a miracle has been heard, and God does accept the honest cry of a heart turned toward Him.

It is important to know that God has not stopped working miracles. He is the same God who multiplied a small supply of bread so that a hundred men ate and there was still food left over, and the same God who answered the prophet's request to carry on that same power. He is still able to do far more than we ask or even imagine, and no need is too great or too small for Him. A million dollars is not harder for Him than a few cents. What matters is coming to Him in the right relationship.

That relationship is what makes prayer more than words. When you can truly call Him Father through faith in Jesus Christ, prayer becomes living communion. If that relationship has not yet been settled, the one prayer He is waiting to hear is, God be merciful to me, a sinner. Through Jesus that door is opened, and then every prayer has access.

Prayer is not meant to force our will upon God, but to bring our hearts into alignment with His will. It often begins with Him placing His desire in our hearts, which we then offer back to Him, and which He delights to answer. Sometimes His answer is yes, sometimes it is no, and sometimes He waits because He has a greater purpose or a greater glory in view, as when He allowed suffering or delay so that His power and mercy could be more clearly seen. Even when we cannot find words and the prayer is only in our mind and heart, His Spirit meets us there to bring assurance and comfort.

Scripture reminds us that the earnest, heartfelt prayer of a righteous person carries great power. Elijah was a man just like us, and God answered his praying. In the same way, the Lord invites you to continue in prayer and to stay alert with thanksgiving. Persistence is not to change God's mind, but to keep the door of your heart open so He can do what He already desires to do without violating the choice He has given you. Prayer is not a monologue where we do all the talking. As we grow, we learn to listen more than we speak, allowing Him to shape our asking.

Even when darkness comes and it feels that all hope is gone, there is hope while there is life, and in Christ there is a hope that reaches beyond this life. He is called the God of hope, and as you trust Him He can fill you with joy and peace in believing, so that you abound in hope even while you wait.

So keep bringing this situation before Him. Bring it honestly, bring it continually, bring it with thanksgiving, and bring it with a listening heart. Ask above all that His will be done, trusting that His will is wiser and kinder than any miracle we might design for ourselves.

May the Lord hear your supplication in His faithfulness and righteousness, answer according to His perfect wisdom and love, and fill you with His peace as you rest in Jesus.