Why no answers
Category: Prayer
Key Passage: Matthew 6:9-15
Speaker: Paul Chisgar
Date: June 7, 2024
Sunday morning right where you ought to be, and God is very pleased with that. God would like to do a work in your heart this morning. He knew you would be here, and I have tried to seek His leadership, and He has something for you today. So let’s all listen up, and let’s do our best to get what God has for us this morning, if you would please. Matthew 6.
We’re going to begin in verse number nine. The title for the internet online would be, “Why No Answers?” Why no answers would be it. If you found it, would you please stand if you’re able to? I respect the word of God. Matthew 6 and verse number nine of God’s word. This is often called the Lord’s Prayer. It’s actually not the Lord’s Prayer. That would be John 17. It’s kind of a model or teaching us how to pray. Jesus never has to ask for forgiveness, and this person is. It’s not the Lord’s Prayer; it’s teaching us how to pray. Matthew chapter 6, we’ll begin in verse number 9. Matthew 6, verse number 9. If you’re there, would you say amen? Good deal. Matthew 6, verse number 9. The Bible says, “After this manner therefore pray ye:”
“Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.”
“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Just a little side note here before we get into the message. You said, look, if you don’t forgive someone, then your Father will not forgive you. That does not mean you lose your salvation. I want you to look at that, and a very key word there is “neither will your Father” forgive your trespasses. He’s still your Father. You’re still saved. The Bible says He will in no wise cast you out. The Bible says you’ll never perish. You can’t be unborn for Him. But there’s something between you and your Heavenly Father. He’s still your Dad. Still saved. But there’s going to be something between you and your Heavenly Father to get this thing right. So just a little side note: if someone tries to use this as they will from time to time, say, “See there, you lost your salvation,” would you point out to them? He said, “Neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Now, let’s pray. Would you pray with me that God would give you a picture, a vision of being a person that can pray to God and get things from God in prayer? Would you pray and ask the Lord to show you what that would look like in your shoes? Would you do this as I pray?
Father, Lord, we sure need you. It seems, Lord, sometimes just more real than others, how utterly helpless and hopeless we are without you. Father, there’s no way I can get the job done. Lord, I pray that you would come and you’d send your Spirit, yes, guiding me, Lord. And then, Father, would you send your Spirit speaking to the ears and hearts of every person here, Lord? Father, would you use me, give me wisdom to keep the attention of everyone, even the young people? And, Lord, would you let us leave knowing how to seek you more in prayer and get answers in prayer? And we’ll thank you for what you do, Lord. In Jesus’ name we ask, amen.
Now, don’t repeat this anywhere. I’m a Tennessee boy, but I’m not the best fisherman in the world. In fact, I don’t go very often. I’m going somewhere where there’s like an expert, Brother Fontaine or deep sea fisher, and they can tell me and teach me how to catch fish. I don’t go fishing very often because I don’t catch fish very often, besides maybe a bluegill. Come on, half of you, okay, 90% of you are on board with me out there right now, you know.
So I really don’t—when I go, I don’t expect to catch fish for the most part, besides maybe a little bluegill. I think every once in a while I’ll get lucky, if you will, but I’m just not that great of a fisherman, so I don’t go very often because I really don’t expect to catch that much. I think—now, I go every once in a while. I think the last time I went was about a year or two ago. I went with my wife. She likes fishing. I’m the kind of guy: if they’re biting, we’re catching something, I’ll stay. But if we’re not catching, then I back. Let’s go home. Maybe too much to do, you know. But she’ll stay all day long even if we’re not catching anything. How many ladies are like that? I see some ladies. Yeah, I’m not that patient, man. I’m like, too much to do, you know, places to go, people to meet.
So I went maybe a year or two ago, but I’ll be honest, I didn’t really expect to catch that much. I caught a couple bluegill, and here’s the thing I was after on that fishing trip: I caught a wonderful life. Amen. And I caught a pretty lady, a sweet lady, to fish with her for a while. That’s what I was all about, 28 years. I want to make sure this thing keeps going, you know.
I don’t go very often because I really don’t expect. Now, a good fisherman, if he’s not catching, he expects to catch something. So if he is not catching, he’ll make some changes. He’ll say, “Something’s not right.” He’ll go to that tackle box that he paid $100 just for the box and then all the lures and everything else, and he paid about $500, okay, more than that. Miss Stacy, how much money does your dad pay for all his fishing? In the thousands, you say, you know, something like, yeah. I mean, they’re serious about that. They’re expecting to catch fish. If they’re not catching fish, they’re going to make some changes. They’re going to get a different bait. They’ll just do everything, go to a different place.
I go every once in a while, almost go typically for the fellowship, or if I know someone else, they know what they’re doing, I’ll go with them, amen. But when I go on my own or with my wife, it’s almost like I’m going through a ritual. All right, we’re going to get some worms or stop by somewhere, you know. And we’re going to go through all the motions of it, but be honest with you, I don’t expect to catch you a whole lot. Now, if we’re not careful, that’s the exact way we get in prayer.
We kind of go through the motions because, pastor, Sunday school boys, listen up right here, whatever you got passed around, just put it all up. Thank you. I appreciate that. But we’re just kind of going through the motions because we’re supposed to go through the motions. We really don’t expect to get something in prayer. And because we’re really not expecting to change things through our prayer life, we really don’t pray that much. Now, every once in a while, to be a quote-unquote good Christian and to do the Christian things, we go through the ritual, but we’re not expecting to catch a whole lot.
How many ever been out to your car and you put that key in there and you turn it and nothing happens? Anybody ever been there? This is not a good thing, you know. And so what do you do? You just sit there and turn it? No, you say something’s not right. So you pop that hood, you go out and you lift it up and you say, “Yep, that’s the engine,” and then you close it back down, right?
Friend, what I’m getting at is, if we’re not careful, we’re just going through a ritual, through the motions in our prayer life, and we’re not really ever getting answers. And by the way, it might not be that main prayer request, but somewhere along the line, you ought to have some kind of an answer to prayer. John Rice said a Christian ought to have weekly answers. That’s not everything you pray about you’re going to get, but you ought to get something along the line.
If we’re not careful, we just get ritualistic, almost like the Catholics reading a prayer card or a book of prayers, but it’s not really doing anything. We’re going through a ritual. That is not God’s design for prayer. God’s design is for you to go to heaven and to get heaven involved down here on earth. That’s His design. And by the way, He has many things He would like to do for you, available for you if you go to Him expecting and believing in prayer.
Let me just say a note or two. We’ve got so many things. I think this month on Sunday morning we’re going to focus on prayer. I want to try to get it all in, but I wasn’t planning on this today. But let me just, at the beginning of this little series, let me say this:
In God’s realm, if you let it, His earth, there’s something that we’ll just call His unconditional will. Whether you pray about it or not, it’s going to happen. God in His sovereignty says this is going to happen. Doesn’t matter what you do or don’t do, it’s going to happen. But there are some things in God’s realm that we’re going to call His conditional will. And those things God would like to give to you, but if I do not spend the time in prayer, they do not happen. That’s why God said over in James 4:2, He said, “You have not because you ask not.”
Now here’s the tricky thing about prayer: you don’t know which one applies. And so you go to God in prayer. Now, the wonderful thing is you have the Holy Spirit. That is your prayer partner. As you go in prayer, if you have your spiritual ears on, you’re a born-again Christian, He’ll guide you how and when to pray. And sometimes He might say, “Friend, I know you’re praying for soul and for their health, and you’re trying to keep heaven for a little while longer, and it’s My will for them to go home to heaven.”
And sometimes the Holy Spirit, as your prayer partner, will say, “Hey, I want you to change that prayer. Maybe you start praying for them to be a great testimony to the end. Maybe you start praying for the family and those that love that individual to have grace during their homegoing.” But the Holy Spirit can guide you in your prayer time. It’s a wonderful prayer partner if you have ears while you’re praying. He intercedes with and for you.
Now, but sometimes if I’m not getting any answers to prayer, I need to do a checkup. I need to go open the hood and find out why. When I turn the key, nothing’s happening. I just briefly want to give you three things in the Bible why—no answers. If you’re never getting answers to prayer, friend, you need to find out why. You need to change the lure on your fishing line.
The first one we’ll look at is found in verse number 15. I read all the way from verse number 9 because I want you to notice the context is about prayer. And then look in verse number 15: “But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Reasons why we have no answers: Number one, the cause of unforgiveness. Now listen to me just for a moment here, just look up and listen to me. Let’s think about Jesus on the cross. Can you just imagine it? Can you imagine Jesus on the cross? If you look closely at Jesus on the cross, I want you to see He has a crown of thorns, very long thorns. And sometimes we see it’s barely hanging on His head. In reality, they took a reed, they took a little old plant-type thing, and they beat that crown down into His skull. And can you imagine those thorns being beaten down, and He’s hanging on the cross, and these long thorns are just poking in His head?
Then as you look at His face, would you look there, and you’ll notice where it used to be a beard—it’s very popular, I mean, that beard. Used to be a beard; they have just ripped His beard out. He’s bleeding there. He’s got a crown of thorns. The Bible says that first judgment hall there, they buffeted Him. Typically, that means they put a black bag over your face, and then they have men just come along like a boxer, but no gloves on, and they just pound on your face. And they pound on your face, and Jesus was pounded. His face is all puffed up, it’s bloody, His beard is plucked out, He’s got a crown on there. I imagine His eyes have just blood kind of dripping out of them. That’s just His face. I’m talking about Jesus here.
Then as you look at His body as He’s hanging on the cross, they had taken a whip—they call it a cat o’ nine tails because it has nine tails at the end of this leather whip, and inside that they wove in there sharp rocks, kind of makeshift glass, and they wove that into those nine little fingers. And then 39 times they would—they would take a victim. They sometimes—different ways, sometimes they would have change on their hand, and sometimes they would kind of just lift them off the ground, and then a soldier would come in just 39 times.
I tend to think that’s the way they did Jesus. I don’t know that. I know Psalms talks about how His bones were just staring out. So I think they kind of lifted Him up. And then they took this cat o’ nine tails, typically 26 times on the back, 13 on the chest, and they’d take that whip, and as it would just bring it over, it would wrap around Jesus’ body. And then that soldier, he would just—he was very talented. He’d do this many times typically. He’d take it, just pull this whip. And can you imagine as those sharp objects kind of dug into His skin and they’d pull it, and it would just kind of be like a lion with his claws just kind of filleting a man? And then pull that, it would just cut open. And then another whip across His back or His chest or across His shoulders, and then just pull it, and it would just tear and rip like a knife cutting through the skin. Jesus is on the cross, and Psalms 22 talks about how His bones were just staring out. You look in and see His bones actually.
Now, as you look at Jesus, and once you also look, on the two arms extended out there on the cross, would you look? And they’re taking a big old nail, a spike, and imagine Jesus there laying down before they picked it up, and He’s laying there, and nobody held His arm down, by the way, for you. Nobody could hold Jesus down. He laid down His life, and He put His arm out there, and they put that nail there. And I imagine Jesus, He was grimacing maybe, but He was kind of like that: “This is what I came to do. I came to die.” And to put that nail there, and boy, that big old hammer came down, and they drove that nail through His hand.
Now, I want you to see it: Jesus there on the cross—crown of thorns, been buffeted, beard plucked out, cat o’ nine tails, nails in His feet. Now watch, watch. He said seven utterances on the cross. Watch the first thing Jesus says. Now listen, He’s there bleeding and beaten. Listen to what He says on the cross: “Father, forgive them.” The first thing He said, “Forgive them.” No wonder He says, look, when you become My child, if you will not forgive, then there’s going to be something between Me and you. I’m not going to forgive you. After all Jesus had done to Him, the first thing: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And shame on me, and shame on you if we do not forgive.
And we’re so foolish to think we can go to God in prayer and get all these answers to prayer when I will not forgive the thing that’s been done to me after all that was done to Jesus. And the first thing He says, “Father, forgive them.” That’s why He tells us that in Matthew 6: if you don’t forgive, I’m not going to forgive. Still saved. He’s not dealing with you as the world; He’s dealing with you as His child. But, friend, if I think I’m going to have an effective prayer life and I have unforgiveness in my heart towards someone, friend, I am fooling myself. I might be out there kind of just going through the ritual, casting a line, but friend, after a while you won’t really expect to have an answer to prayer because you’re going through a ritual because there’s something between you and your Heavenly Father.
And, friend, wait a second. You said, “I’m not really sure if I have unforgiveness in my heart.” Would you do this? Would you ask the Holy Spirit, right there where you sit? Would you ask the Holy Spirit? Would you say, “Hey, someone that I have unforgiveness towards?” Now, who’s that person in your mind? Good chance that’s the one. A friend, and I go to God, “Lord, I need the answer to prayer.” Hey, what about that unforgiveness, that bitterness in your heart? Oh, no, no. By the way, if you get real earnest in your prayer, God will say, “Hey, is there a person, if I mention their name, you just cringe?” Not out of fear of what they’re going to say or do the next time, not out of that, but you’re just bitterness and unforgiveness.
Can I say this? You can forgive them. Preacher, you don’t know what’s happened to me. You don’t know what they’ve done to me. You don’t know what they’ve done to the people I love. I cannot forgive them. Whatever happened to, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” It might not be the easiest thing. It may not be a one-time thing, a continual thing, but you work at it, friend. God will give you the grace where you can do it. He’ll give you the strength that you can handle that burden of forgiving them.
It is so vital. Corrie ten Boom, I’ve often mentioned her over the years, was a godly lady from a godly family in the Netherlands. The Nazis came in, and the family, they were hiding Jewish people. They had a little clock shop. How many ever read the book or saw the movie, The Hiding Place? A wonderful, wonderful book. And the movie’s pretty good, too. I’d encourage you to read it and get it. Corrie ten Boom, they got caught, sent to a concentration camp, Ravensbrück. And she and her sister, Betsie, were in the prison. And, of course, the Germans at that time—and I’m not saying everyone, but at that time—and those Jewish—excuse me, German guards were just so cruel in that concentration camp. And Corrie could forgive typically what they did to her, but she would see the guards come in sometimes, and they would take her sister out and do just horrible things, very sinful things that men would do sometimes. Well, that just got Corrie. And, of course, she lived through all that, and she got out after the war was all over, and she’s going through churches, I think, in Europe, and she’s giving a testimony about how God took care of them during that time. She wrote the book and so on.
And as she’s giving testimony at a church, not preaching, but just giving a testimony, one of those guards that had come in and taken her sister out walked in the back door. Can you imagine? She’s giving testimony, and all of a sudden, that guard—and boy, when he came in, her mind and her emotions and her heart just went racing. Wow. Those old feelings and old emotions came back, and the memories came back about him. She thought, “Oh, no, not in church. Not now.” She just tried to get through it. The service went on. After the service was over, people wanted to shake her hand and talk to her a minute. And that guard got in the line. And she thought, “What have I been going to do? There’s no way, God, this is more than I can handle. There’s no way after what all he did to my sister. If he did it to me, maybe I can forgive it.” And she was arguing with the Lord a little bit. “I can’t do it.”
And the Lord said, “Hey, want you to give it your all. Want you to do the best you can. Want you to obey Me. Want you to forgive.” Well, that went against her nature and her heart and her emotions. And the man came closer, and well, she was just almost terrified. “What am I going to do? I cannot forgive this man for all that he’s done.” And the man got there. She said, “Lord, it’s all I can do, all I can do to even raise my hand.” And yet she tried to muster up what little strength she had, and all she could do on her own was to lift her hand to shake his. And she said, “As soon as I raised my hand, I was shocked at the forgiveness that just filled me.” God Almighty moved inside her, and I had love for that man, how messed up he was, and had forgiveness for him.
A friend, I’m saying if you step out in faith and you try to honor God and forgive those individuals, God Almighty will empower you. He’ll give you the strength to forgive, and you’ll have your relationship—excuse me, your fellowship—restored to the Heavenly Father. God Almighty will say, “Hey, the prayer line of heaven has been opened up again. The fellowship has been restored. You’re acting like My child because you are My child, and you’ve seen how your Father handles it: ‘Father, forgive them.’” And now we’re getting close again. The prayer lines are opened up. But if I’m not careful, I’ll get used to the rut of the ritual of kind of saying a prayer here or there, but not exactly, because of unforgiveness.
Let’s go on. Let’s look at two other things real quickly here. Two other things, very, very briefly. Would you look over at Isaiah 59? Isaiah 59? And verse number one and two, we’ve been looking at these verses several times here recently. Why no answers? Number one, because of unforgiveness. Why no answers? Number two: Look at Isaiah 59. Would you look at verse number one? Isaiah 59, verse number one, would you please? Isaiah 59, verse number one. If you’re there, would you say amen? Isaiah 59, look at verse number one, if you would please. “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened that it cannot save. Neither is His ear heavy that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you that He will not hear.” That’s amazing to me, that last section. “Your sins have hid His face from you that He will not hear.”
Friend, we’re just going to title this second one: Why no answers? Because I’m not willing to get rid of sin in my life. Friend, there is not a sin in this world that is worth you not having an effective prayer life. If you’re going to be the dad, the husband, the neighbor, the worker you ought to be, and you would like to be, you need the prayer line between you and heaven open up. And friend, you watching that junk, that smut on your phone—that whether it be on Facebook or the TV, whatever it may be—that is not worth you having an effective prayer life.
You going over in a corner somewhere or on the phone somewhere and talking about everybody and all their problems and gossiping is not worth you having a good effective prayer life. That drink in the refrigerator is not worth you having a good effective prayer life. That dirty, rotten music that you ought not to be listening to is not worth you having the prayer line broken between you and God. The best thing you and I can do is not worth it—is get rid of that sin, the prayer line open up, and have a good effective prayer life of God. He wants to give you good things. What the Bible says: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” It’s His good pleasure to give you things, friend. He gives good things to them that ask, but He will not hear if I harbor that sin in my life.
And what a shame. We have Christians that go through the ritual and the motions, you know, “Yeah, he says his prayers here and here, but I haven’t ever heard of him getting a prayer answered.” Just kind of seem like he goes through the ritual. Friend, I don’t know what the sin is in your life, but can I encourage you to give it up? It’s not worth it. How many know somebody’s sick right now? How many know somebody’s sick right now? Raise your hand if you know somebody’s sick right now. If you didn’t raise your hand, I need to find out where you live. Hey, your person you know that’s sick needs someone that has an effective prayer life praying for them. A whole lot of people sick right now. Boy, wouldn’t it be wonderful if we had Christians that just had the open prayer lines between God?
By the way, if I get real earnest in my prayer life and I really sincerely seek an answer to prayer, and there’s some sin, the Holy Spirit—it’s amazing how He’ll say, “Hey, bud…” Can I confess a little bit here? Do I have to pay if I confess to you? Friend, I’m teasing with you. I don’t know—a week or two ago, I was praying. I felt like the Lord said, you know, by the way—let me go back and preface this a little bit. The emptiness is pretty good sometimes. Anybody want to say amen out there? And we weren’t watching anything sinful, but I just felt like the Lord said, “Man, you and your wife are just spending too much time.” I mean, we have been overdosing on Little House on the Prairie. We went to Andy Griffith. We’re kind of just, you know, and not sinful things, but we’re just spending so much time. And I felt like the Lord said, “Put that thing up.”
And I’m not saying—I don’t know what all is for you—but my wife was gone, and I was debating about selling it. I thought about doing it. Lester Roloff did—took it out back and shot a hole through it with a gun. Yeah. And where that box is right now—I’m talking about the TV—it’s in my attic. Man, it’s a pain to pull those attic stairs down and climb all the way up there with that crazy TV. I thought, “Well, that’s going to be pretty hard. Might want to save it in there for a championship ballgame or something.” But it’s pretty hard. I’ll be honest, I felt like the prayer line opened up again between me and God. Now, I don’t know what it is for you. By the way, that’s probably been two weeks ago, two or three weeks ago. I’m so glad I did that. It’s been wonderful to have the prayer lines opening up again. Now, what is it for you? What is it for you?
John Rice years and years ago was preaching in St. Paul, Minnesota. And the invitation was given, and some folks came to get saved. The ladies went to a separate room, and the pastor’s wife and some other ladies were dealing with them. And service was over. And the lady—a mother of a grown lady that went there—she came up and she said, “What did you do with my daughter?” And Brother Rice said, “Well, did she come forward to get saved?” She said, “Yes.” “Well, they’re over in another room being dealt with about their salvation.” And Brother Rice said, “Well, ma’am, how about you? Are you saved? Are you going to heaven? Are you a born-again Christian?” And the lady kind of got a little flustered. She said, “Well, I don’t know.” And he said, “Well, I’ll help you with that.” And she says, “Well, every time I go to pray, all I ever hear is, ‘What about the $800?’” And Brother Rice said, “Well, what about the $800?”
And she began to tell the story. Fourteen years earlier, her husband had died, and she was a little—two children. They didn’t have really anything. She wasn’t working at the time. She just had their house. Now, you’ll know this is an old story when I tell you this part: so when the kids went to school, she set her house on fire, turned it into the insurance. She collected $800. Well, wouldn’t it be nice if homes cost that nowadays, you know? She collected the $800 and moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, got enough money. They started their life over, and she was able to get a job and whatnot. Her kids were grown now, and the daughter was coming forward to get saved. And she said, “Every time I go to God and pray, He always says, ‘What about that $800?’” And Brother Rice said, “Man, won’t you get that thing right? It’d be worth it.” She said, “Well, I don’t have $800.” He said, “I understand that. Won’t you go to them just try to make it right? Maybe make payments. You got a good job. Your daughter’s got a good job. Won’t you just start making it right?” She said, “Well, that’s been years and years ago. I don’t even remember the insurance company.” He said, “Well, won’t we just switch the roles there? If someone owed you $800, I imagine you could probably find them, couldn’t you?”
Friend, it’s never worth it to hang on the green paper down here if you do not have an effective prayer life with God. Friend, can I encourage you and tell you that God Almighty—you could be a born-again Christian, but if you have sin in your life, God says, “I will not hear.” And so we just kind of get used to going out, sitting on the lake, and never catching a thing. But to be good Christians, we go through the ritual, but we don’t expect to catch fish. Hey, I’m just saying this morning, would you let the Holy Spirit speak to you? And maybe He said, “Hey, quiet here and open the hood and put the battery cable back on.”
Hey, reasons why we have no answers to prayer: Number one, unforgiveness. Number two, because of sin in their life. Oh, I encourage you, it would be the best decision you make, apart from your salvation, to get things right in your life so you have an effective prayer life.
Let’s look at one more thing, and we’re done this morning. One more thing. Would you look over at 1 Peter chapter 3? We’ve got to hurry along here. First Peter chapter 3 in God’s word. Why no answers? Unforgiveness, sin in our life. And very briefly here, let’s look at this: 1 Peter 3. Would you look at verse number 5? 1 Peter 3 and verse number 5 of God’s word. Wouldn’t you find that? Would you say, “Glory to God”? Good, good, you’re pretty quick. 1 Peter 3 and verse number 5 of God’s word.
The Bible there says, “For after this manner in the old time, the holy women also who trusted in God adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands. Even as Sarah obeyed Abraham, called him Lord, whose daughters you are as long as you do well and are not afraid with any amazement. Likewise.”
So it’s a continuation, if you will, of that thought. “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers be not hindered.”
Number three: I don’t have my prayers answered, no answer, because I’m not right in the home. Men, can I just say a word or two to you? You are fooling yourself. Listen up, man. Listen up. We’ve got to get this quick here. But men, you’re fooling yourself if you think you can go around browbeating your wife, talking down to your wife, not loving her as she is, trying to correct her all the time. You’re trying to belittle her all the time. If you live like that and you think you’re going to have an effective prayer life, you’re kidding yourself.
You ought to lift her up, let her be the queen of the home. You ought not to push her out the forefront, put all the responsibility on her. The Bible says she’s the weaker vessel. And it’s a shame on so many men in our day and time. They want to hide out in the background. They’re pushing her out the forefront and expect her to do everything when it’s your responsibility, ma’am. And I will not have my prayers answered if I’m always making her do the hard part. I’m sitting back and I’m letting her be the stronger one while I want to sit back and drink my sweet tea and complain about everything she does. Shame on you. Now, I won’t have my prayers answered when I’m like that.
Ladies, if you’re always—everything he wants to do, you’re always the one to tell him why he can’t do it and you ought to do it this way, and you’re never encouraging him and letting him lead—shame on you, you’re not going to have an effective prayer life either. Boy, it’s a wonderful day in America if we get our homes right. You realize if we got enough homes right in America, God gets the White House right.
A friend, our homes are key. And sometimes they want to look good to everybody else. On the outside, I look at me, it’s all hunky-dory. And our home, they go home and fuss and fight all the time, and we expect God to hear our prayers. God says you’re fooling yourself. The prayers are hindered. And so we go through the ritual. We just go through the ritual. Well, all right, I’ll say a couple prayers here and there. We don’t expect.
Friend, prayer is talking to Almighty God, all-powerful. Nothing too hard for God. Isn’t it wonderful to see the mighty hand of God move? He likes to move. His hand’s not shortened. Can’t get down to earth. It’s not shortened. Can I say, He’s not getting so old He can’t hear good? I mean, some of us are getting like that, especially when it comes to selective hearing. You know what I’m talking about? He’s as strong and as capable way as He ever was. All the mighty miracles you heard about, God can still do miracles today. Hey, is the prayer line open?
That last point about our homes. Can I just say this to our young people? If you’re not obeying your mom and dad, friend, you’re fooling yourself if you think you have an effective prayer life. Our homes are so vital. So key.
I’m going through the ritual, but I’m not going in faith. And the Bible says whatsoever is not of faith is sin.
Original File: Why no answers - Pastor Paul Chisgar Sunday AM 91221