Words of Comfort, Strength, and Encouragement

IT MAY BE DELAYED, BUT IT'S NOT DENIED

 
...Do not fear, from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come because of your words.  Daniel 10:12
 
We all have goals, dreams, and visions in life.  We pray about them and try to hold fast to them, because with faith in Jesus we know they will come to pass.  And, when they do, it is the most wonderful feeling.  A dream becoming reality, a prayer answered, and our faith in God strengthened even more.
 
But there are times the enemy will cloud the vision that God gives us. He may not be able to read your mind, but he can hear your words.  He sees your actions (and reactions) and knows your "hot buttons".  He knows just what buttons to push, and when to push them to get your mind off the vision. He would like nothing better than to steal our dreams. But he can't steal our dreams, unless we let him.  This is why it's so important for us to hold fast our confession of faith.  It's so important be diligent in our faith.  "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8) 
 
Disappointment can open a door for the enemy to slip in and "steal, kill and destroy" (John 10:10), our hopes and dreams.  There is a song entitled "When God is Silent", that I truly love. It talks about how when God is silent He is giving us more time to pray. If you're praying and praying and praying for something and it just hasn't arrived yet, keep praying! PUSH!  Pray until something happens.  Then pray some more.

There are times when we pray to God for an answer, and it seems that all hope is gone. There is no need to spend time worrying, just fall down on your needs again and again.  Jesus prayed the same prayer three times in the Garden, the night before He gave His life for us (Matthew 26:44, Luke 22:41-44), and the Lord sent the angels to minister unto Him to give Him the strength He needed to make it to the cross.  If you believe God is working all things out to your benefit, you have to believe His timing is part of that. He wouldn't have given His only Son if He wasn't going to keep His promise to us.
 
I want to encourage you this day, not to be disappointed at what appears to be a lack of results in prayer.  We have no idea what the Lord is doing on our behalf to answer our prayers.  We cannot see it, but rest assured His is working it out.  What He requires from us is faith to believe that the Word of God is true.  Just because you FEEL the answer isn't coming, do not let the enemy make you BELIEVE your prayer has been denied. Keep your eyes focused on Jesus, and keep praying in faith, remembering to thank Him and praise Him for all He has done.
 
Remember: GOD IS FAITHFUL!