How Do You Know God Hears You When You Pray

By Carey Kinsolving

"God doesn't only have one phone line," says Avery, age 10. Apparently, Avery has never heard a busy signal when praying.

We've all experienced the unavailability of important people. We may think God is too busy to listen to the details of our lives, but God is a perfect father. He takes special delight when his children come to him in prayer.

Even when President Kennedy had important meetings in the Oval Office, one person always had access to him: his son.

"If you have faith and are born again, then you should know God is listening," says Joel, 10.

Not only does he listen, but he also answers prayer.

"One time I prayed for my brother to get well, and the next day, he was healed," says Paul, 9.

"I know because I prayed for my grandmother," says Deana, 10. "She has a rare type of cancer, and God has kept her alive for 13 years."

"God answers prayer because he keeps my family safe," says Ellen, 7.

Friends, thank you for examples of how God has answered your prayers. Remember what the Apostle James wrote in his New Testament epistle: "You have not because you ask not." However, James could have said, your prayers are answered because you had the faith to ask.

James also wrote that God will not answer the prayers of the proud, envious and jealous. Selfish prayers from wrong motives don't go any higher than the ceiling.

"God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble," wrote the Apostle James. Self-sufficient people don't like to ask anyone for anything, but where God is concerned, we all need his grace.

Whitney, 10, says it another way: "If you ask for candy (and you might want it) but if you don't need it, God might not give it to you. If you pray for safety, he will give you safety."

Whitney wisely distinguishes between a desire and a need. Furthermore, she knows God has her best interest in mind. He's not going to give her something harmful.

Three times, the Apostle Paul asked God to remove a particular form of suffering he called a "thorn in the flesh." However, God said, "My grace is sufficient for you."

God wants us to learn how to trust him in the midst of suffering. God always has the big picture in view, namely our spiritual development.

As James, age 11, says, "God will answer you, but it might not be what you expected."

God has a reputation to uphold. Prayer that seeks God's glory can never go wrong. King David prayed for victory in battle not to prove his prowess as a warrior but to exalt God's name among the nations.

"Honoring God always brings blessings to mankind, because God desires the good of those whom he has created and especially those whom He redeemed," writes Bible scholar W.L. Liefeld. "The effective power of prayer does not ultimately reside in the prayer itself, but in the One to whom prayer is directed."

"In our classroom, we have a prayer request list," says John, age 11. "When prayers are answered, we move them down to the praise list."

John, the lessons you're learning about depending on the Lord in prayer are invaluable. Your teacher must have a bold faith to post a prayer request and praise list in your classroom.

To illustrate effective prayer, Jesus spoke of the nurturing relationship of a vine to branches. Referring to himself as the "true vine," Jesus made an incredible promise to his people: "If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done to you" (John 15:7).

To abide means to stay. Where you stay has everything to do with whether your prayers are answered.

Carey Kinsolving is a syndicated columnist, producer, author, speaker and website developer. To see more material like this, visit http://www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org. The Kids Talk About God website contains free, online content for children and families. See Carey’s Kid TV Interviews. Print free lessons from the "Kids Color Me Bible" and make your own book. Let an 11-year-old girl take you on a trip around the world in the Mission Explorers Streaming Video. Print Scripture verses illustrated by child artists. Receive a complimentary, weekly e-mail subscription to our Devotional Bible Lessons.

Bible quotations in this Bible lesson are from the New King James Version.

Copyright 2007 Carey Kinsolving

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