The Power of Prayer?

Question

You pray and you get no answers and get frustrated right? What if we acknowledge instead of praying would that bring answers?

Answer 1

Where I live a NO is an answer and a Not yet too.
God is not our errand-boy who should do our will.

Jesus teaches us to beg the Father: May your will be done.
He loves us so much that He says no to us sometimes as any good parent does.

Answer 2

God always answers our prayers. We may not get the answer we want or the answer we expect to get, but we always get an answer. When you pray, you should pray that God's will be done, not your own. God knows what is best for us and will answer in a way that is best for us. We may not realize this at the time, but in the long run we will be better off with God's will instead of our own.

God bless,
Stanbo

Answer 3

Sometimes God answer us and we don't listen. He can show you the answer in many ways and through people or things, you have to listen and pray, never stop praying. Have faith, if the answer is no, believe that God has a better plan for you.

Answer 4

With prayer it has to be in accord with God's will, look up Matthew 5, God gives us life, and the ability to do something with that life. It is what we choose to do with it that counts. If we choose to keep praying and do nothing to assist that prayer, of course we will not be answered, like "OH God I want a Mercedes Benz, yet we do not work toward that goal we will not just receive it because we asked God for it.

Answer 5

I get answers when I pray but I do remember to thank the one I'm asking.

Answer 6

"May today there be peace within you. May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content knowing you are a child of God. Let His presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and
love. It is there for each and every one of us."

Answer 7

When I pray, I get answers.

Answer 8

First BELIEVE, then the prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Answer 9

u know what would bring answers?

if you worked for what you wanted. stop relying on other powers to do it for you.

Answer 10

AT ONE time or another, nearly everyone feels the need to pray. In fact, people of almost every religious persuasion pray earnestly. For instance, thousands of times a day, a Buddhist may repeat the prayer "I place my faith in Amida Buddha."

In view of the problems that persist earth wide, it is reasonable to ask: What do people expect to achieve by praying? Are all these prayers doing any good?

Why Do People Pray?
Many Orientals pray to their ancestors and to the gods of Shinto or Tao. They do so in hopes of passing examinations in school, reaping good crops, or warding off diseases. By their efforts, Buddhists hope to gain enlightenment. Hindus pray devoutly to their favorite gods and goddesses for knowledge, wealth, and protection.

Some Catholics hope to benefit mankind by devoting their lives as monks or nuns in closed monasteries or convents, praying continually. Millions of Catholics seek favors from Mary by saying memorized prayers, perhaps with the aid of rosary beads. In Oriental lands, many people use prayer wheels. Protestants repeat the words of the Lord's Prayer, though they may also express their feelings to God spontaneously. Many Jews travel great distances to pray at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, hoping for a restoration of the temple and a new age of prosperity and peace.

Though millions exert themselves in prayer, human society is increasingly plagued with problems of poverty, addiction, broken families, crime, and war. Could it be that all these people are not praying in the right way? For that matter, does anyone really hear prayers?

Does Anyone Hear Prayers?
Prayers cannot do any real good unless they are heard. When a person prays, he evidently believes that someone in the invisible spirit realm hears. However, prayers are not transmitted by mere sound waves. Many people believe that someone can even read the thoughts of the one praying. Who might that be?

Just how thoughts originate in the billions of neurons that compose the cerebral cortex of our brain is largely a mystery to researchers. Reasonably, though, the One who designed the brain can read such thoughts. That one is none other than our Creator, Jehovah God. (Psalm 83:18; Revelation 4:11) Prayers should be directed to him. But does Jehovah pay attention to all such prayers?

Are All Prayers Heard?
King David of ancient Israel was a man of prayer. As a divinely inspired psalmist, he sang: "O Hearer of prayer, even to you people of all flesh will come." (Psalm 65:2) Jehovah is able to understand prayers uttered in any of the thousands of languages spoken by mankind. The fact that no human mind could process so much information does not mean that God cannot pay attention to all who pray to him in an acceptable way.

Yet, Jesus Christ—also a man of prayer—revealed that not all prayers please God. Note what Jesus said about the then popular practice of repeating memorized prayers. According to the Catholic Jerusalem Bible, he stated: "In your prayers do not babble as the pagans do, for they think that by using many words they will make themselves heard." (Matthew 6:7) We cannot expect Jehovah to listen to prayers that do not express our true feelings.

Indicating why some prayers do not please God, a Bible proverb says: "He that is turning his ear away from hearing the law—even his prayer is something detestable." (Proverbs 28:9) Another proverb says: "Jehovah is far away from the wicked ones, but the prayer of the righteous ones he hears." (Proverbs 15:29) At a time when the leaders of ancient Judah bore heavy guilt, Jehovah declared: "When you spread out your palms, I hide my eyes from you. Even though you make many prayers, I am not listening; with bloodshed your very hands have become filled."—Isaiah 1:1, 15.

The apostle Peter mentioned something else that could make prayers unacceptable to God. Peter wrote: "You husbands, continue dwelling in like manner with [your wives] according to knowledge, assigning them honor as to a weaker vessel, the feminine one, since you are also heirs with them of the undeserved favor of life, in order for your prayers not to be hindered." (1 Peter 3:7) The prayers of a man who ignored such counsel might get no farther than the ceiling!

Clearly, certain requirements must be met if prayers are to be heard. However, many who pray show little concern about doing what God requires of us. That is why so much earnestness in prayer has not resulted in a better world.

What, then, does God require for our prayers to be heard? The answer has to do with our very reason for praying. In fact, if we want to know whether prayers do any good, we must understand their purpose. Why has Jehovah made it possible for us to speak to him?