Faith & Life
When the Door Does Not Open
A reflection on faith, unanswered prayer, and the courage to keep trusting.
Personal Reflection
But what happens when it does not turn out the way you prayed for? What happens when you do not receive it? What happens when the door is slammed in your face?
Let me be honest with you for a moment. There are good things I have prayed for, sincerely and desperately, and God has answered with "No." I am not talking about winning the lottery or some self-serving wish. I am talking about healing. I am talking about a child who, for whatever heartbreaking reason, does not beat her cancer. I am talking about the most terrible things we can ever imagine.
I was taught to pray expectantly. To claim these answers from Heaven, and to thank God for answering them even before it happens. But how are we supposed to respond when the exact opposite of what we prayed for comes to pass?
How do we continue to trust God through that?
I wrestled with this question hard recently, and the most honest answer I could arrive at was simply this: because I have no other choice.
The only alternative to trusting God is trusting the world. And I do not trust the world. Because we are not living for this world. This world is temporary and broken, and expecting to find our forever here is like expecting a woman to remain pregnant forever. It was never meant to be permanent. It was always meant to give way to something more.
So I have to move forward in faith, even when I do not understand, even when it is hard. Even when it hurts in ways I do not have words for.
Because God never leaves. He walks with me through these difficult seasons. He provides a consolation that is perfect and tender, a quiet assurance that it is okay to be hurt, that grief is not a lack of faith. He reminds me that He too was hurt by this world. He does not expect us to walk through anything in this world that He Himself did not first experience.
That truth brings me comfort. That truth helps me heal.
Pray for me. I will pray for you. 🙏
A Personal Blog on Faith, Life & the Journey
