Well, a lot of other prayers get answered on the spot--like when in many cases you, Lord, led me to pray for the sick and those tortured by demons. Or when signs and wonders needed to happen, like commanding nature in Your Name. Thank you, Lord, so much! I praise You! Plus the other answers to prayers that the human eyes and awareness cannot notice or comprehend.
However, there are many requests that remain pending--and these are urgent requests. Like my arrhythmia palpitation which I have been praying for years and is very, very urgent. Our finances which is always short of what we need and which makes us incur loans which we haven't paid for years--but which we've been praying for. And many others like that.
And yet, other people easily get what we pray for for years. And I doubt if they ever prayed for them. If they did, they prayed to their gods. And yet, they so easily get their finances and continuously at that. I'm sure I'm not envious of them. I just want my prayers answered. May God continue to bless them, but please Lord, bless me and my wife, too.
Some may say, what may look urgent to us may not be to God. I used to think this way, but I don't believe this anymore. It's urgent because God's Word says we should not let any debt remain outstanding. And it's his will that we pay our debts and bills and buy the things necessary for living with our own money. What we pray for are urgent, even in God's eyes. I don't believe it's God's will that his servants beg or borrow money.
But for some reason, the prayers remain stacked and buried in the files. Meanwhile, we make loans and borrow money and our lenders mock and insult us, even treat us with disdain. And termites destroy our house.
Corrupt people and those who are arrogant and boastful continue to be blessed with money. And many of them are even church people. No matter what wickedness they do, they seem to be favored. They have money and their ministries grow big.
"I've seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in its native soil..." [Ps.37].
While here I am, believing with all my heart about your teachings, Lord Jesus, on holiness, meekness, simplicity, patience, kindness and humility, and yet nothing seems to happen in our lives (my wife and I) except be in debt, lack, and suffer the insults and cruelty of those who have money. What do I want to happen in our lives? Simple things--be out of debt, have a small decent house, send my kids to school, and help other people so they can know the Lord. That's all. And I want all these to be given by God directly, not through people who will only control our lives in the end.
Not that my principle in life is based on the money value system. I have shun that a long time because I want your glory, Lord. I don't value people for their money. But the fact remains that I need money. We need to buy food and pay bills and pay debts and send my kids to school. I now even have a grandson (he's cute, praise God!) to take care because my son is yet unemployed. And here and there I see the wicked flourishing while the righteous lack many things and get mocked and insulted and ridiculed for it--even by people close to us, even by blood relations.
It's amazing how even Christian believers and church leaders around us mock us for believing your Word and keeping ourselves away from worldliness and materialism. They preach the Word but deep inside them, they hate the Word. And they get blessed materially for it. Their ministries are even made colorful, praised by men. While the discipleship-fathering church ministry you gave me isn't growing--even if I and my wife keep praying for it.
What's your plan for me and my wife, Lord? Are we just for humiliation--experimented like guinea pigs? We believe and are humiliated, proven wrong by those who mock your Word.
When will you fully take pity on us, Lord? Why do you hold back blessings? Why are you frugal in providing for us? That has been my impression--when it comes to us, you release your blessings in trickles. With other people, even those who enjoy sin, you open your floodgates. I know the impression is wrong--I always believe your Word even if experience doesn't look it. Then why don't you correct the wrong impression I have and make everything according to the truth you make me see in your Word?
But my final decision is to hang on to you, Lord. I and my house will stick to your Name and Word as long as we live--regardless of how ridiculous and in lack our lives are--even if people around us treat us like garbage. But please, help us Lord. Rescue us. Make our righteousness shine like the dawn and the justice of the cause you gave me like the noon day sun.
By the way, I praise God for good health for all of us!
I believe with my heart that better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked, but we need to pay bills and loans. We need basic material things. Your Word also says, "the wicked borrow and do not repay. But the righteous give generously." Enable us to pay all our debts, Lord. The way it is today, the wicked are the ones who can give generously--and then hold people hostage who receive their generosity. They shout at us and treat us like trash. They put us down and laugh at us.
It's been like that for years, for decades. I and my wife have been praying, but our other urgent prayers remain unanswered for years. Why Lord? What's wrong?
