Do You Pray To A Machine?

So where’s the rain? I once was told by an elderly native of this part of the country, since passed on, that anyone who predicts the weather in Texas is either a “new-comer” or “a *##* fool”. Well, I’ve been living here long enough to pretty much except that theory because I’ve see a many a 60% chance of rain slip east of us leaving us high and dry. Then again, I’ve also seen a 20% chance of rain last three or four days. We keep getting promised rain, but the rain keeps eluding us, taking its own wandering direction, not listening to the professional climatic experts as to its predicted behavior. I guess we’ll survive. We’ve been here before. Farmers and ranchers have suffered, some to the point that their lives have been so altered they’re no longer farmers or ranchers breaking, in some cases, a five or six generation family tradition. But, the world goes on and they’re making it in other occupations. I have no doubt things will hold together until it decides to rain again. I also have faith that it won’t be long before I’ll be writing about the rain and the mud. We never know what the morrow brings; pray for the best; prepare for the worst; but live each day as a blessing from God and be thankful for it.
One morning an impatient four-year-old told her mother, “Maybe if we both pray out loud, God would hear us.” Mom agreed, so they prayed together. When they had finished, the little girl asked what God said. Her mother then tried to explain that God doesn’t work that way. She told her that sometimes prayers aren’t answered for a long time, but every prayer gets answered in the proper time. The little girl, upset by what her mother just told her, gasped, “Do you mean we were praying to an answering machine?”
[Matthew 6] As have I, you sometimes wonder if your prayer will ever be answered. Like the little girl, our faith may be so small we think God will get to us sooner or later, but right now more important things need tending to in the universe. We just continue to pray His answer won’t come too late. (John 11: 1-44) Lazarus became ill and died. His sisters, Martha and Mary, each exclaimed that he would never have died if Jesus were there to heal him of his illness. Because of Jesus’ close relationship with the family both sisters knew of the powers Jesus possessed. Martha knew who Jesus was, but neither she nor Mary had any idea what Jesus was about to do. He restored life to Lazarus, a friend whom He loved. There are times when I have prayed earnestly for the health of someone and rejoiced when they recovered of their physical problems, then again, I’ve witnessed their decline unto death. Was I praying to an answering machine? One day God wasn’t too busy and got right to me, but on another I was just too far down the list to get what I wanted. And that’s the whole point. God is still in charge! Jesus had a marvelous way of showing us what life is all about and the love that God has for us in this life. In Matthew the 6th chapter, Jesus teaches us how to live humbly and how to approach God with repentance and thanksgiving. We’re not to express our faith and obedience so much in a physical manner as we should a spiritual manner. God loves us as individuals and wants that relationship to be personal. Jesus says we should not worry; God will take care of us. (Also, Luke 11: 1-13) It’s God’s will what happens in this life. My prayers are answered because of my faith in God’s will. I know tough times are coming, but I also know I have life in Jesus, even after I enter the grave, for He loves and weeps for me.