Has God ever really answered your prayers ?

reply to post by BrianOrion


I'm sorry, but I really don't understand the main thrust of your response...

I am in the group of people that believe the power of prayer comes from the power of the mind, not an outside source. I think the mind can in some ways manipulate matter around you and each year more studies on the topic are published. Positive thoughts can have a good effect on your mind and in turn the world around you. I am so curious about why people are eager to give credit for their achievements to Jesus when they put in their own hard work. Like Jon Jones, I am sorry but I don't believe god created you for the express purpose of elbowing peoples' faces in - you put in all those hours training, studying, dieting.

Originally posted by LiberLegit
And so moan the smug Atheist crowd. And so moan the jaded ex-Christians claiming their "prayers were never answered." I've had it with this "whoa is me" generation, constantly identifying with their own egos and wallowing in their self-pity. Suck it up people. Whether you believe in God or not, amazing things happen every single day - who or what caused it doesn't change the fact that it happens. People think different ways. Not everyone is some purpose driven life cloud riding Christian, and not everyone is some cynical know-it-all Atheist. Either way, who cares?

Again, prayer isn't some kind of charity by God, it isn't Christmas morning. Christian or not, most people have such a warped view on prayer.

edit on 4-5-2012 by LiberLegit because: (no reason given)

I wonder if you have read the bible, because if you did then there is no reason that you shouldn't know that the correct spelling for a particular word you used is "woe", not "whoa".
Who cares? You may not, but then again why would you have taken the time to try to reason with people if you didn't care?

Originally posted by SoulReaper
reply to post by Unity_99

 

I'm afraid God does not allow you to define who he is and who he isn't. Like I said, you can choose to deny the true nature of the Alpha and Omega... but it is just that, your denial.

And look I completely understand that you can say the same thing back to me... that it is merely my flawed understanding declaring God to be otherwise.

There is a difficult Truth to behold which is foolishness to one who will not believe. I don't expect it to be appealing to you. I understand that it does not line up with your reason or logic or sense of self worth.

Only when you have forsaken building your own kingdoms here in this temporal existence can you truly look forward to the divine and eternal kingdom built without human hands.

This world must answer to one who is pure and holy. And for him to truly be pure and holy... all who come before him on that day of days who remain mired in imperfection will perish. For God will not allow anything that is corrupted to become one with him in eternal perfection. It is impossible. Which is why that which has become corrupted (and man in his flesh certainly has been) must be purified before entering into oneness with God. There is no other way. That which remains corrupted will indeed endure Gods Wrath in his righteous judgement.

I hope that you will one day see the light.

Soul

edit on 4-5-2012 by SoulReaper because: typo

Not going to let anyone define that for me, sorry. I happen to only base what I bleieve through soul searches, and personal experiences, some which have been inpsired by others who really nudged and challenged me strongly and due to my own windows opening up and memories.


We're supposed to weight it all against our own hearts and go within.

Pray in one hand and poop in the other.

See which hand fills up first.



Anyone else think it's funny that pray and prey are so similar?

Originally posted by jeantherapy
I am in the group of people that believe the power of prayer comes from the power of the mind, not an outside source. I think the mind can in some ways manipulate matter around you and each year more studies on the topic are published. Positive thoughts can have a good effect on your mind and in turn the world around you. I am so curious about why people are eager to give credit for their achievements to Jesus when they put in their own hard work. Like Jon Jones, I am sorry but I don't believe god created you for the express purpose of elbowing peoples' faces in - you put in all those hours training, studying, dieting.

Jesus healed people and told them, "YOUR faith has made YOU well". If you are going to be mentioning Jesus, at least read what he said.
And by the way, do you really think that the mind is not connected in any way to what you call "an outside source"? How so? Please explain, thanks.

If you work hard to remember, yes, a lot of your prayers were answered. Not all, to be sure. And probably not the Really Big ones like grandma's cancer being cured, or winning the state lottery, or you marrying Nicole Kidman. But a lot of minor league prayers were answered: You got a new softball, you got a new bike, you got something better than new underwear for Christmas, you passed a test, you got a date for the prom, you got a new job - maybe not THE job but a job, you got to third base with that redhead. OK, evanescent stuff. Like most Christmas toys, broken and forgotten within a week.

Some people make a virtual career out of asking God for things - and they're real specific about what they want. And, that's the point: It's always what they want, it's not necessarily what God wants. In fact, asking for stuff you don't have, for changes to your advantage, etc., is telling Him (in effect) that you are dissatisfied with the way He has already arranged things. Not cool. God tends to prefer things going His way. And if it's arm wrestling between you and God, guess who wins!

Instead of asking for things, try asking for insight, try asking for the strength and wisdom to do the right thing - not necessarily to have things done your way but for you to do things God's way.

reply to post by LastProphet527


I believe the key to prayer is 'God's will'. The disciples asked Jesus how to pray. He said not to keep babbling like pagans for they think they will be heard for their many words. Jesus said the Father know what you need before you ask him and to pray like this:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, YOUR kingdom come, YOUR WILL be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread, Forgive us OUR debts, as we also have FORGIVEN OUR DEBTORS. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. If God gave us everything we asked for and not what we actually needed, it would be one messed up world. I've been blessed by not getting some of the things I thought I needed. He is our heavenly Father and like a good parent he knows that we don't really need some of the things we think we need. We should pray for his WILL in our lives and the ability to see it, then you start seeing answered prayers because you know what to pray for. He said he would meet our needs not our demands. If that were the case we'd just be a bunch of spoiled brats and not appreciate life and some of the simple pleasures. Its all about the kingdom and eternity, not just the moment.

reply to post by LastProphet527


Yes, G-d has answered my prayers.

Best of luck.

reply to post by humphreysjim


I totally understand your line of thinking. If you are truly looking to learn I would suggest reading the early part of “the Source Field Investigations”. (I've only read the 1st 3rd so I can't recommend anything more) by David Wilcock.

The interesting thing about the book, so far, is he only fleshes out other scientific research performed by major universities. I suggest looking into it and coming to your own conclusions.
Secondly I suggest looking in to the “Law of One”. In both cases keep an open mind and don't let anybody steer, manipulate, or try to guide you. The overriding theme of the information.

I believe in science. From there I have made other decisions on what I believe and don't believe. Have my prayers ever been answered? Yes, but by God or the power of positive thinking? I couldn't say, but I have experienced “specific experiences”, and let's leave it at that.

Oh yeah, one caveat. I have also witnessed a black triangle, back in 1984 in central Connecticut, that was enormous, silent, and slow traveling along Route 15 (Wilbur Cross/Merritt Parkway). I witnessed this with hundreds of others along side a parallel road, for over 55 min.
My wife and other family members also see it, but none will talk about it. So take that for what it is. If you believe the mainstream you might as well just ignore this reply too.(I apologize for any typos, I'm using dictation software)

reply to post by LastProphet527


Big Time!

A few years ago I was at the bottom of the barrel, lost my job, house was about to taken by the bank, arguing constantly with my partner, severe depression, car broke down, friends nowhere to be seen and I could go on.

I was contemplating the most selfish act of my life at that point but instead I decided not to do that and prayed to God and asked to be shown the way forward for whatever I am meant to do in life. I could write you a longer paragraph but dont expect anyone to read it and dont want to be on a high horse any longer than needed to get to the point.

Home is now safe, Ive got a full time job that I get to do but plan to leave in a short while, got married, new car, have new loving friends and this evening I will be doing my dream of performing my first proper stage hypnosis show after using the conspiracy teachings I have read over the years to develop my skills myself.

I do not entirely believe the way the scriptures set things out anymore as I have been guided beyond that now but I can guarantee you that there is a God and this wonderful thing is beyond comprehension, has no ego, has no failings, has nothing against you at all in any way shape or form, it is pure and complete love!

There is an afterlife but to call it that is wrong because it is part of life and im here to live here, right now for a short time, I want to and am bringing as much laughter and love to anyone I meet as possible.

Right now this place can get so many people down into despair but if you shine through from within and remain true to yourself and what is right and just. You just might make a difference in the world.



I got my chance at it and im grateful for it...



Give yourself the chance as your greatest enemy is yourself and only yourself. Be true and shine from within and you can never go wrong as long as you are not selfish.

reply to post by LastProphet527


My prayers always get answered, but then again i don't go around praying for a pot of gold or for wealth. Not that he doesn't have the mojo, he just has a problem with selfish people. If i lay hands on someone with 2 brothers or sisters that person will be healed like he promised he would do. Some people just do not pray right. As with all things there is a right way to pray and a wrong way.

reply to post by XXXN3O


You're selling yourself short dude, no god changed your life, you did.

You took the steps you needed to change your life, you took action to change your circumstances.

Seriously dude, be proud of yourself, it's ok.

Originally posted by TiM3LoRd
this feels like a troll thread to generate stars for everybody EXCEPT the OP lol

I'll just chime in some generic drivel about how god is great and how all powerful he is and the rest of the jesus sheep will hail stars on my comment too. wheeeeee. Just look at the first page.

So much back slapping its funny.

Better a sheep than a goat.

Second line.

Originally posted by AGWskeptic
reply to post by XXXN3O

 

You're selling yourself short dude, no god changed your life, you did.

You took the steps you needed to change your life, you took action to change your circumstances.

Seriously dude, be proud of yourself, it's ok.

Well if you are correct, I would say, learning how to love changed my life.

I do not get too hung up on belief anymore but if I were to I would say I believe everyone should have freedom to believe whatever they want to as long as it brings no harm to another.

I really do not think it matters to God if you believe in him or not. That is a weakness if he does and a sign of vanity, I do however believe in God and that you will get an answer if you ask from the heart but that is my opinion.

I really could not care either way, if it works for you it does, if it does not, find your way. Just find a way if you want too and be happy

Nothing offensive intended to anyone I just do not get why the heck it matters what anyone else believes (unless it is harming another person) because we are not qualified to judge anyone and if we are, we should be judging ourselves.

If you are judging another person for anything other than harming another, there is something wrong in the whole process.

reply to post by LastProphet527

I apologize for not answering your post as you requested. My response was what I believe prayer to be and you were looking for an actual answered prayer. So, I'll try to give you an example without being too wordy. A few years back we made a trip to Hawaii and I sat on the computer booking all these fun water things to do with my daughter and nephew; snorkeling, submarine ride, canoeing, etc. Since I'm deathly afraid of the shark thing, I asked God to please not let me put us in harms way. If there was something we didn't need to do, then please don't let me book it. Well, long story shorter, we got to the airport on time (early) and were told there was not going to be a flight at the time ours was scheduled and the best we could hope for was a much later flight and an overnight in Dallas and on the Hawaii the following day. Anyway, I called the first adventure I had planned and cancelled it. In fact, it was the main one I wanted to take because we would going to see two extra islands. I told my husband I had asked God to protect us and either he didn't want us on the flight or he didn't want us on that adventure. A lady beside me said God works in mysterious ways. Now for the answered prayer part. Not 5 minutes after I had cancelled, we suddenly had a plane, we were boarding, we caught our flight in Dallas and arrived in Hawaii without ever changing airline tickets and were on time. I have always assumed my 'shark' was at this first adventure and he protected us. Whatever the reason, I truly believe this was an answered prayer. We had a great time in Hawaii. This old lady wore the kids out and they had a blast. God is good and God does care. We just need to approach him realisticly. Thats not to say nothing bad will never happen to me but in this case I will always attribute this event to an answered prayer. I hope this was an example that you were looking for.

Easy to answer...

And you are right, most people are praying to a different god. This happens with the addition of "amen"

The Bible tells us God knows our prayers before you even prayer. Meaning he knows your needs. People pray mostly for greed, material, or something that will actually ruin them.

Everytime my truck starts, thats a prayer answered. Every day my kids eat, that is a prayer answered. When work gets abundant, and I work 60 hour weeks with a bad back, and I make it out unscathed, that is a prayer answered.

But no, if I pray for winning the lotto, it goes unanswered. I don't get upset, I chalk it up to God knowing that money would ruin me. I was born to work. And I couldn't be happier

reply to post by Unity_99


Fair enough my friend.. at least you are searching. I fear for you though. We cannot find knowledge and truth from within the flesh... We do not self contain the cure for what ails us.

I think we have pretty well proven that mankind cannot produce "paradise" on earth according to our own wisdom and "soul searching"

down the road perhaps you will come to terms with this as well.

Soul

Originally posted by Shoonra
If you work hard to remember, yes, a lot of your prayers were answered. Not all, to be sure. And probably not the Really Big ones like grandma's cancer being cured, or you getting to marry Nicole Kidman. But a lot of minor league prayers were answered: You got a new softball, you got a new bike, you got something better than new underwear for Christmas, you passed a test, you got a date for the prom, you got a new job - maybe not THE job but a job, you got to third base with that redhead. OK, evanescent stuff. Like most Christmas toys, broken and forgotten within a week.

Some people make a virtual career out of asking God for things - and they're real specific about what they want. And, that's the point: It's always what they want, it's not necessarily what God wants. In fact, asking for stuff you don't have, for changes to your advantage, etc., is telling Him (in effect) that you are dissatisfied with the way He has already arranged things. Not cool. And if it's a tug of war between you and God, guess who wins!

Instead of asking for things, try asking for insight, try asking for the strength and wisdom to do the right thing - not necessarily to have things done your way but for you to do things God's way.

edit on 4-5-2012 by Shoonra because: (no reason given)

edit on 4-5-2012 by Shoonra because: (no reason given)

God wants us to pray for things we want, provided that God agrees that what we want is good for us. Disssatisfied?! You speak as though there are no evil spirits, as though you think that people just sit there and have everything arranged for them by God, well I'm sorry but it doesn't work like that. Ask and you will recieve. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened to you. Don't just sit there telling people that what they are doing is not cool, being considered cool is not our objective here, our works matter to God. I realize that many so-called Christians don't believe that their work is going to be judged, it's not as if they don't have a bible, they just don't believe that God gave them understanding of the scriptures so they turn to preachers who are taught by other men and then we can see that Jesus was right when he said that misunderstandings abound when you look for information from the wayside instead of the source. God doesn't play tug of war, either he agrees with what we ask for or he doesn't. When praying it is a very good thing to be as specific as possible. I have had prayers answered, from life and death prayers to headaches and missing snowpants, God cares about it all. Just because we don't understand why God does what he does it doesn't make him less powerful.
Many people feel as though they ought to get communistic treatment from God. Nope.
This is coming from someone who drowned as a preteen, the whole water in the lungs and stomach scenario, and I didn't need any mouth to mouth or even a nurse or any medical treatment whatsoever. Don't believe me? That's okay because resurrection of the dead is viewed as an impossibility by many.
I understand that for many people, this puts their perception of my credibility out the window, and it's bearable, Jesus himself was accused of being demon possessed why wouldn't I be accused of lying? I can not advocate the Holy Living Word enough to those truly seeking evidence of God.

Despite the overall, and perhaps enevidable, outcome of this thread I am compelled to offer my answer. So in short, yes. 'God' has answered my prayres. Could it all just be coincidence? Sure, but that is a debate for thoes interested in finding proof for themselv's, or simply debunking some others expierence. What I can tell you is that of all the prayres he has answered, and by no means do I prey for every little thing, that there was one that goes beyone coincidence, beyond understanding, and in my reality of truth encompases 'miracle'. There simply is no other answer, and mind you I am a highly logical and scientificly oriented individual. If I can find a worldly explaination, even a fantastic one, then I tend to go with that.

Let me just say I am no spoon fed religious nut. I am apparetly one of the few who was given proof of a devine being before I really knew anything about God or Religion. The kind of proof that is equally as personal as it is undeniable, literally life changing in a tangable way. I do not push my belief off on anyone and understand the nature of a non-believer. My logical and scientific mindset keeps me well rooted in practical matters yet I am the beholder of proof as well. Sometimes I can literally feel the duality of this tearing at me, yet I can not deny my life truth(s).

My proof is just that, mine. I offer no story here nor am I interested in debating the validity of my expierences. It was for me and to that end it will remain. If this means that everyone moves on at first glance here siting 'no proof, nothing to see' or 'he is crazy' then so be it. I am fine with that. What I can say though is that if there is anyone else left out there who is willing to take another human being at face value as being open, honest, and above all able to dechiper truth from fiction, then perhaps this will spur just one to ask 'what if...?".

I wish I knew the answers to the questions like if there is a God then why is there "___________________" awful things, I really wish I knew but I do not. What I do know though is I do not fault a creator, a giver of free will throughout, for mans hand. Nor can I fault him for the nature of physics and all it encompases. I have seen unjust pain and suffering to the point of questioning my own reality of belief. Yet, at the end of the day we all have to believe in what we know to be true, what we discover as true through expierence.

I will tell you this, before my expierences, I too could not justify believing in a God or Creator. I mean, how can you believe in something without a shread of proof? I guess once you find it though, it kinda takes the guess work out. I still require faith or I would have second guessed my own personal expierences out of mind long ago. However I'm glad I held on to it, I am glad I know there is a God, and I am glad God took the time to know me for whatever reason.