Best Of Man Talk: Why My Prayers Aren't Heard Part 1

This is Amy Thomas from the masculine journey podcast where we discover what it means to be a wholehearted man your chosen Truth Network podcasts starting in just seconds. Enjoy it, share it, but most of all, thank you for listening and for choosing The Truth Podcast Network. This is the Truth Network welcome to man talk to my DAW CM and talking and walking Christian men's ministry where they are devoted to breaking down the walls of race and denomination and challenging men to take their God assigned role as our host will Hardy and Roy Jones Junior, a black guy and a white guy. Welcome to talk radio and is good to to be back.

I we want to give Roy here home, the phone here in a minute but we did was just thankful for the listening audience because what you guys is done have done for us is to keep man talk radio going and we thank you for all of your feedback that you've given us because this is God's doing God is the one who has established this and we are just thankful to God for in a couple weeks ago we were talking about the unity prayer. We talked about the prayer in the garden when Jesus was praying to his father and that prayer was basically broken down into three parts. Jesus prayed for him self. Jesus prayed for his disciples in any pray for all believers. And so today we're going to go in a little different direction and what we're going to do is we going to talk about when prayer is not answered. I think we got Roy on the phone now hello Roy how you doing, sir yes sir with Don find Lord is good to us and hope he's good to you as well. You okay yes it does, great, great, so we are introducing the show by talking about unanswered prayer and the beauty behind this. The way this show got started. It was something that God it laid on my heart.

After we did the unity prayer the prayer in St. John 17 and I was just going through the TV in a humble sudden there's David Jeremiah on the team and he's talking about the same thing that we're going to be talking about Selassie.

Wow, what better way to present this particular topic.

Then let David Jeremiah help us to deliver this message of unanswered prayer it really start thinking about why God really doesn't answer prayer in so many elements could be called a roadblock in our dialogue and communication with the father you write Roy because what what is happened. I think in the churches today is we've been told if you pray you going to get an answer, but we're going to find out during our talk, you know this week and next week that there are answers that we may not want to hear, but it's an answer. Nonetheless, exactly. You will 30 got right indeed and you know whatever you got to get said you love to chew it up and eat it and digested, and then after a while it's going to have either positive or negative effect on you and that's what you going to share with other people so you know it's how you been been taught spiritually so we David Jeremiah course everybody know Dave Jeremiah and you know he just did an excellent job after I listen to that message said wow you know could take some elements from his messages didn't incorporate some of some of things that we want to talk about today, but that the first clip we want to talk about is this clip when people pray and then Roy. They say oh well. My prayers not working you know not been praying over the same thing for you know, five, six, seven months and nothing's happened when you say that Roy will not our time right is not our ways are not our way.

Second, self-examination method to some of my your conversation. There may be multitude things causing that delayed response. Or maybe it know that is your answer.

Maybe it's the lack of compassion in your own life towards others. Many different thinkers will learn through the next two sessions together and it is quite eye-opening when you think about how many times we pray in all really coming prayer right.

She recognition of God's grace and love and and provision for life.

Before we get into all things work, people have examined ourselves like we look in her heart to see if there's anything in there that's not not wholly and it would not live your life not in the right place.

In that moment, so this is what he says, you know, in reference to when people say hey Dr. Jeremiah this prayer things not working. I've heard people who say they are question say something like this doesn't work for me is that work for. I pray about things and they never seem to change the why should I bother. Pray. So I want to go on record at the beginning of this talk to confess to you that I don't understand all there is to know about prayer. Frankly, I'm a fellow learner along with the rest of you.

Prayer has a mystery about that we all understand. I know that God sometimes delays his answer. I know that God sometimes answers with no and no is an answer. Yes, I know all these things but I also know that there are times when God says he does not answer our prayers. See and and I think that's where we we missed the mark Roy because he is as he stated no is an answer, but we want to hear an affirmative so so that's why we keep praying. We keep praying because we're looking for the affirmative and and God has already given you an answer in the course. We talked about this a couple weeks ago when the apostle Paul prayed in Corinthians over there. You know he had that thorn in the flesh, and he prayed three times to God that he remove it and then finally got said my grace is sufficient so that is a no no you don't know Paul, I'm not going to remove this storm, but you got my grace and my grace is going to keep you from straying off the path of righteousness sake.

Remember that what a joyful life. We can live right will be so frustrated by the fact it was answer the way we expected it to be answered and we need discernment of a brother side and say look, God is copied to type.

Not what he wants you right now. It may not ever be what he wants exactly because you know in James. He talks about in James chapter 4 verses one through four and he says that they were fighting among the Christians and he said there's wars and you will lusting after the things of the world. And then he says he says you lust after these things and you don't get him any goes on the say you kill and you desire to have, but you cannot obtain and you cannot obtain because our mind is on worldly things and you know Roy, sometimes we try to test God by saying okay, try this prayer thing and see if it work okay I'm I'm going to ask God for multimillion dollar house and if I don't get it that I noticed prayer thing. No work in this.

This is the thing I think people need to realize that sometimes you need to wait for the answer that God gives you. And when he gives you that answer you accept and receive that answer from him and move forward in many areas of our life will work on moving forward right and one wrong move for something doesn't go right. We can move forward. A loss occurs, we can't move forward that goes back to work all hope all my grace is sufficient for you, and so that should be what we should remind yourself but also to continue forward and knowing that he had undergirded and supported from below and sometimes hard to find chocolates remember because of our immediate gratification raising you talk that way.

We've been trying there's not much people in this country will walk for very long exactly so you know, so he says you want these things, you cannot obtain them because your mind is not in the right place and he says when your mind is in the right place. You don't even ask for the things that you want.

So in the end, when you do ask you asking for that word. A missed NPO King James version means self gratification so that yes, I hadn't been looking for things that they desire from God, and they may be praying earnestly, but the problem is is they just sit there sometimes and say I'm not going to pray. I'm just going to wait on God. Well, right will what I need and what I want to watch that. Pray that all heard of Holland times with C God is not going to act until you ask you to honor him and to acknowledge him by your prayers knows what you need he knows what your heart desires that you don't ask you not acknowledging his power and glory by reaching to him and turn it over and see, and I think that's why you know we we have what we have today in the world. We have so much conflict we have so much discourse is because we're looking for God to intervene, but our heart and mind is not right you know it's not position right in God I'm talking about believers now you know you not heart it in mind is not in the right position. So God is not going to honor our request. In the course as we move through the study will will see exactly why God won't answer the prayer will and so verse three when you and you do not receive and talk about because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get pleasure right for your pleasures. Typically mean things of the world right not you, not provision in God knows the things you want to enjoy the thinking you are times when it will be and we do those things that you will provide some of those places that make life for you, don't you know world, God. Therefore anyone you think of the world what a man with coming up on a break right now Roy, but we got a come back and bring them to finish talking about this because this is relevant when prayers answered.

This is why CM and would love to have you join their community of men for breakfast every first and third Friday of every month and model discussions and fellowship.

After the breakfast in town meeting location is in their voracious poster First Christian Church and Connors will 1139 Main St. encouraged him a hard start at 7 o'clock on a hard stop at the first time visitors eat for free. Join your hose will a black guy in a white guy praised the Lord right now. The court January 27 28 2023 well if you'll take a look at family research Council's website and courageous event coming up for men on May 4 and fifth Friday night and Saturday at Greenstreet Baptist Church.

You will be have an opportunity here Jerry Boykin Charles flowers Jackson and Tony Perkins and several other great speakers that we can make plans to attend at the second thing is our breakfast now starts at 630 to give little bit more time for fellowship. Would love for you cannot join us again 1130 N. Main in Kernersville on the first and third Fridays of each month. Think you will Aman so the next thing we want talk about why your prayers may not be answered is because were still harboring sin with steel. We still have so much sin tucked away that we're holding on to and wherein we have not let that sin go and listen to what the Dr. Jeremiah have to say about that. Sometimes as followers of Christ our prayers don't get answered because were harboring unconfessed sin in our lives back with me to the first verse. Psalm 6618 read it again if I regard iniquity in my heart. Notice it doesn't say if I sin the Lord will not hear me. It says if I regard iniquity in my heart. Another words if I know there is a sin in my life and I'm not doing anything about a person who regards iniquity is one particular sin in our and he loves it he makes an alibi for any excuses in any covers is not primarily. Therefore, that keeps us from giving our prayers on answered. It is the love for it and the excusing of that thought away from and this is what we do. Roy, this is exactly what we do. I could not have said it any better than David Jeremiah said it is that this this holding on and not wanting to let go of sin and then when clicks because typically we we have a tendency to when we get in trouble is when we call him Lord, right exactly and and he says exactly.

If I regard iniquity in my heart so if if I know.

Just as he stated if I know it's there and I don't confess it, then that's unconfessed sin and God is not going to answer our prayers. There is a litany of of other passages that he gave Proverbs 1529, says the Lord is far from the wicked, but he hear the prayers of the righteous course. Going back to. We talked about in James four, you know that if we looking for things and we have a selfish motive in attempting to up paying them and then we go in prayer and ask God for them. God is not going to answer that prayer because again we have ourselves.

We're putting ourselves before the creator and and there's there's other verses and thereto you have any Roy Proverbs 28 91 was also almost anyone will talk about you got in her life. If you can imagine that you are our communication pathway, whatever that is, if you want something from modern-day terms the Internet. It's almost as if in our lives were buffering the buffer used fitness spinning. I know there's nothing happening right so we have sin in our lives were essentially buffering our dialogue with our father because he hears it not. Not acting on you not lose not recognizing holy prayer because of that that sin in our life so that Dr. Jeremiah gave Proverbs 28 nine anyone turned a deaf ear to my instruction. Even their prayers are detestable.

So even their prayers are detestable so so God is not going to look at it and he's not going to honor it and so we're wondering why you know, our prayers are not getting answers and so we revert back to what we said earlier, is that week we come with this whole heartedness and say well this prayer thing don't work with seat we have and examine ourselves thoroughly enough to see inside to see what was still holding onto that we need to release and I'm also reminded he he gave another one here on Isaiah 115 he says. And when you spread your hands. He said hide my eyes from you when you make many prayers. He said I will not hear your hands are feel with blood so we we as God's people. We need to ensure that we confess that sin and see God want us to do it because I talked to brother it was sometime last year maybe the year before last, and he said well I don't know why I should to confess my sin because it my sins forgiven, past, present and future pencil so I led him to first John 19 and I said just God would not have put first John 19 in there that if you confess your your sins he is faithful and just to forgive you your sins and cleanse you Paul and what he went out of put you put that in there if you shouldn't confess your sins to him. So yes you have to confess your sin will in early right know that you know you are covered by the blood to point that you made that he's expecting her to bring it forward. Confess it to acknowledge it and what that does.

It honors God like this bother you. You are my Lord and Savior honor you by letting you know that I recognize where I have failed. It also allows you an opportunity to release it to the father during during that confession. I and you know there's a verse that the couple versus a reference right behind another wheels out there, 59, 12 Shirley the arm of the Lord is not too short to say, nor his ear to go to hear. But your iniquity but your iniquities have separated you from your God stands have hidden his face from you so that he will not want.

He will not hear right in line with what you get here exactly see and so again we holding onto something that we don't want to let go and that is hindering it's it's actually putting a stumbling block between me and my God. He also references a first Peter 312 and 13 for the eyes of the Lord over the righteous and his ears are open to their prayers but the face of the Lord is against those that do evil, and then he says who will harm you if you be followers of that which is good. So if it again. He's coming back to the same premise is that God's ear is open to the righteous because the righteous have followed what needs to be followed in Scripture by confessing and putting these things aside from them so that the communication between God and you is not hindered because of sin, you got any other verses Roy. We had taken one in the first John 190 look up your force came in at the very end of that go. I think the point" that were trying to share with you here the that is important for that self reflection like you got have an internal inflation will you need examine your heart and the things that you may not think her problem if it against God's word and guess what the problem. A man got so big that we put in our society and we we can download the word of God and where churches are at today so many places and situations we try to make the church part of the world that the world part of the church and that's what I think is another problem. Wills were people think it should be that big a deal, but to God is the big deal. There's no sin if those consequences are different, but since then, the first John 19 if we confess our sins he is faithful and just look again so soon in pure pure from all unrighteousness requiring we have not in the. If we claim we have not been making up to be a liar and his word is not in the back to internal reflection looking at your heart okay. Prayers are being answered as you live where it needs to be is your heart what needs to be is your mind what needs to be and we know what rooms 12 tells about renewing your mind daily. Consider so many things.

Will that can impede God's ability to hear our prayer is just this is a great great session and yeah and and I think God for that. Because, listen to what when I hear people say Roy and I heard this many many times people say we are all God's children well if we are all God's children listen to what Jeremiah, Dr. Jeremiah has to say about that. Let me rewrite up front with this Bible says that God does not hear and answer the person who do not belong to his family. Praying is a family exercise belongs to those who are in the family of God. Only prayer that God hears from someone who is not a Christian is God, be merciful to me a sinner coming down to the cottage we definitely going to have to elaborate on that family thing next week so that we would a man enhance because I think really we just been taught this product prosperity gospel, and we had got ourselves lined up with the truth because you know we are creatures of if it sounds good, let's go do it plan everything that sounds good is not good for you just like everything we eat naturally is not good. As we wrap up today show. Be assured that TA W CMM talking and walking Christian men's ministry is building a community of men Christ followers with a desire to be servant leaders in their homes, communities, churches and work environments. Check out our website for upcoming events and regularly scheduled meetings is a note for topics that you would like to have us visit in the future. Thank you for joining us on man talk today. Visit us at www.tawcmm.com men walking the talk.

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