Little Charlie, my four-year-old friend, had a very special Christmas. He asked for a number of things for Christmas, but his most important request was for a motorcycle.

Christmas morning, Charlie hurried to the living room to check out his treasures. Much to his dismay, there was no motorcycle. He exclaimed, “Santa didn’t bring my motorcycle.”

For a day or two, Charlie played with his other toys, then he gathered them all together and put them back under the tree. He told his dad, “Call Santa and tell him to come get these toys and bring me my motorcycle.”

Now Charlie is mad at Santa. He is mad because he didn’t get what he wanted, and he is mad because Santa won’t come pick up the toys and replace them with a motorcycle.

So why didn’t he get the motorcycle? His dad’s explanation is that the toy is too big to be stored in the garage with the things already in there—two cars. The toy cannot be left outside, and there is no place for it. It sounds reasonable to an adult, but not to Charlie. He is just mad; and he is mad at Santa.

I have been thinking about this all week, and it reminds me so much of the attitude of some towards God. I’ve heard people say, “I’m mad at God because He didn’t answer my prayer.”

I know a lady who prayed for the healing of her son. When her son died, she turned against God, and she refuses to pray. How sad this is.

There are two examples in the Bible of apparent unanswered prayers. The first is in the book of Second Samuel. After David committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband killed in battle, the king took her as his wife. When Bathsheba’s child was born, Nathan, the prophet, went to David and told him that God was going to punish him. He told him that God would spare his life but that the child would die. The scripture says, “David therefore sought God on behalf of the child. And David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground” (Second Samuel 12:16 ESV).

 Though David prayed all night for the life of his child, God chose to follow through with His punishment. Did God hear his prayer? Of course He did. He had promised through His servant, Nathan, that this child would not live.

The second instance is found in the New Testament. The apostle Paul told the Corinthians that he didn’t want any man to think more of him than what they saw and heard from him. Then he said, “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from being conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (Second Corinthians 12:7-9).

Did God hear David’s prayer? Yes, He did; but He followed through with His promise. Did God hear Paul’s prayer? Yes, he did. Paul infers that in this passage. God had made His decision, and He did what was best for Paul.

Before we get mad at God for not hearing our prayers, we need to read what He says about praying.

• “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” (James 5:16).
• “Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him” (First John 3:21-22).
• “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is in the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:26-28).

God hears our prayers. We pray, however, not having access to all the information. God sees the big picture, and He knows what is best for us. He tells us that we must be righteous, having kept His commandments and having done what pleases Him. The Spirit will intercede for us, and all things will work together for good to those who have obeyed Him.

My little friend, Charlie, is learning a valuable lesson. He is learning that just asking (or demanding) doesn’t always get you what you want. His request is a selfish one. We laugh at the story, but aren’t we sometimes like that with God?

We often ask with the wrong attitude, taking nothing into consideration but our own wants and desires. We must remember what Jesus told the disciples when they asked Him to teach them to pray. He first reminded them that our Father knows what we need before we ask Him. Then He proceed to give an example of the type prayer that the Father wants. Important in this prayer was this statement, “…your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:19).

When our prayers are answered, whether it be yes, no, or wait, we need to acknowledge that we are willing for the answer to be whatever is the Father’s will. We also need to examine our hearts and be in obedience to the Father before we ask anything of Him.

Sandra Oliver