Last week I shared about planting our seeds for the future, like a farmer plants seeds for an abundant harvest. You can find that blog here if you missed it.
Prayer is one of those ways we can deposit seeds for a future harvest. This week, we are going to view our prayers as deposits into our prayer banking account, in case you relate better to money analogies instead of crops.
God can be trusted with every prayer you’ve ever prayed.
Imagine having a prayer bank. Every time you pray, you make a deposit in this bank. But this account doesn’t work like the ones you are used to. The amazing thing about this bank is that the balance never decreases. And you can continue to grow your balance by depositing more prayers.
If you’re like me, there are things you’ve been praying years for, and are still waiting for an answer from God. If so, please know that for all those years we’ve been praying, we have been making steady deposits into our accounts. God has to respond with some kind of return on our deposits. And maybe He has…partially.
Perhaps you’ve received some interest on your deposit to sustain you while you wait, but know that there is a hefty balance that remains in your account from all those prayers you’ve been depositing over the years.
Think about the principal of investing – long term investments yield higher returns. Consider your prayers to be blue-chip investments – a stable investment in a stable God, who has proven Himself time and time again. There is no question about it – He can be trusted for His reliability to bring a favorable return on every Word that you’ve ever read in the Bible and translated into a prayer.
Think about the characteristics of a Blue-Chip investment:
- Growth – God has a reliable and solid history and has shown us He can be trusted.
- Size – We serve the Most High God. I don’t know how you can get much bigger than that.
- Stability – We serve a God who never changes. He is the same yesterday, tomorrow, and forevermore.
- Value – There is nothing more valuable than the peace and joy that God brings to our life, even while we’re waiting.
However, there are risks associated with long-term investments as well. The biggest risk is disappointment – the disappointment of seeing others get the things we’ve been praying for. The disappointment of feeling forgotten about or neglected, and the disappointment of prayers not being answered the way we were expecting.
But when considering the risk of disappointment, we must be sure to read the fine print in regard to our investment:
And we also have joy with our troubles because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. God gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us
Romans 5:5 ICB
Anytime you’re feeling disappointment with the return and response you’ve received from your prayers, think back to this clause. In the end, your hope (remember this is your expectation, explained here), will not lead to disappointment, as long as you allow your investment to mature. This means don’t give up on God or your prayers.
God can be trusted with every prayer you’ve ever prayed. Sometimes our prayers may be answered through our children or grandchildren, which makes it an inheritance investment. We don’t have to keep checking on the progress God is making on our balance. Our investment is 100% guaranteed.
When you start to feel worried about your investment…Just Trust God.
I have a prayer journal that I’ve been writing in for about ten years. And I’m still waiting on God to answer some of those prayers. They are still in my account. I admit sometimes I get discouraged and may stop praying for them for a while, but that doesn’t cancel any of those prayers from over the years. And eventually I get over my feelings and pick back up where I left off.
As long as I keep praying, and keep believing, my account is going to continue to grow. They will affect my future generations. And honestly, I don’t know any fully guaranteed investments that can beat that.
Don’t Stop Praying!
CLOSING CHALLENGE:
Have you grown weary while waiting on God to answer your prayers? Or perhaps He didn’t answer in the way you want? Remember that He is a stable, solid, and reliable God who is able to do anything. Trust in His way, trust in His plan, trust in His timing, and trust in His decision.
PRAY WITH ME:
God,
As we continue to wait on you, thank you for reminding us that our hope in you will not lead to our disappointment when we allow your love to fill us. Remind us of this when we encounter areas in our lives that seem to be disappointing. Show us the joy that comes through your love, so that we can continue to trust You while we wait.
In Jesus Name, Amen.
Feel free to respond in the comments section… and share this story with someone in your life that could use the encouragement.
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