Expect God to Answer Your Prayers

by Rick Warren — October 4, 2024
From 40 Days of Prayer

“If you want to know what God wants you to do, ask him, and he will gladly tell you . . . If you don’t ask with faith, don’t expect the Lord to give you any solid answer.”

James 1:5-8 (TLB)

God wants to direct you in life, but two things need to line up: You need to ask him for help, and you need to ask with the right attitude. You need to ask him in faith, trusting him to provide the answer.

The Living Bible paraphrases James 1:5-8 this way: “If you want to know what God wants you to do, ask him, and he will gladly tell you . . . If you don’t ask with faith, don’t expect the Lord to give you any solid answer.”

Have you ever asked God for something while not expecting to get it? God works in your life according to faith. Living by faith means you expect God to answer your prayers.

You expect him to provide the solution and keep his promises. You expect that he wants to accomplish his will through you. And you expect him to provide everything you need to do that.

So often we say, “God, please guide me!” and we walk away without waiting for guidance. We just immediately get to work on the problem. We may say that we want God to give us wisdom and help us make the right decision, but we don’t really expect him to. We think it all depends on us.

But God has promised to give you wisdom—if you wait for it. Wisdom is seeing life from God’s point of view. Wisdom is the ability to make decisions the way God makes decisions.

Think about this: God never makes a bad decision. He never makes a mistake. He says if you trust him and listen to him, he will guide you. But you must first ask in faith.

No matter how you feel and no matter what your life looks like, God is for you and not against you. He is a good God, and you can be confident he is working for your good. You can trust him with your future because he knows better than you do what is best for you.

When this truth becomes the foundation of your prayers, then your prayers will become powerful and passionate and purposeful.

So, what do you want to see God do in your life? What big things do you want to ask of him, believing in his good purpose for you? With God’s goodness as your foundation, what do you expectantly hope he will accomplish through you?

Ask him for it in faith!

Talk It Over

  • Have you ever asked God for something but didn’t expect to get it? What did you ask for? And how did God answer?
  • What do you tend to do while waiting for God to answer your prayers?
  • What can you ask God for today in faith, expecting him to answer?

Will you follow Jesus today?

The Bible says you can only get to heaven by trusting in God’s Son, Jesus Christ. You can’t earn your way into heaven: “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV).

If you’re ready to commit your life to Jesus, start by praying this prayer:

“Dear God, you have promised that if I believe in your Son, Jesus Christ, everything I’ve ever done wrong will be forgiven, I will learn the purpose of my life, and you will accept me into your eternal home in heaven one day.

“I confess I have sinned, and I ask for your forgiveness. I believe that Jesus died to take away my sins and that you raised him to life. I want to trust Jesus as my Savior and follow him as Lord from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do your will. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.”

If you just prayed to accept Jesus, please email me at [email protected] and let me know about it. I’d like to send you some free materials to help you start your journey with Jesus.


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