Sometimes I Thank God For Answered Un-Prayers
Do you guys remember that old Garth Brooks song “Unanswered Prayers”? The song tells a story about a man and his wife bumping into an old high school girlfriend. Years before he would pray that that old girlfriend would one day be his wife. Then he goes on to say that some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. Well, today I’m not actually going to talk about unanswered prayers but about another gift from God: answered un-prayers.
I’ve discovered that God often answers “prayers” that we’ve never actually even prayed. I often look back and see how God has worked things out, and I didn’t even have to pray! I don’t know why I get so shocked by it sometimes.
A potential scheduling fiasco
The Nativity Story…as retold by the kids!
Recently, I experience some answered un-prayers. My mom had asked me to get a hold of my siblings and arrange a date to do our family Christmas party. We do a separate gift exchange for the adults where the adults get together and play Dirty Santa. While the adults are playing all of the kids get together and organize a play or a retelling of the Nativity Story (ALWAYS entertaining).
My family Dirty Santa invite I sent out
Sometimes it can be a bit stressful trying to arrange a function that accommodates everyone. I was having trouble trying to find a date that would work for everyone. We had already been struggling to find a day and time to do the annual Christmas pictures of all the grandkids. Then it’s also occasionally difficult to work around families with shared custody with ex-spouses in order to work with what weekends they have the kids.
On top of that, it’s hunting season, so we have to accommodate the hunters in the family. Then we also have to schedule around volunteering for the church Christmas functions, attending church Christmas services and the rest of the holiday obligations (Christmas concerts, work parties, other family gatherings, gatherings with friends, and so on). It’s a lot to try to fit in this time of year!
The dilemma
Basically, there was only one night I could find that seemed to work for everyone, or so I thought. My sister, Cora and her family couldn’t do that night because they had tickets for a hockey game for that night. They had already planned a family night.
I was so bothered and upset about it. How could this work now? I didn’t want to leave anyone out, didn’t want hurt feelings or cause feelings of rejection. How was I supposed to decide who to leave out? It looked like I was either going to have to go back to the drawing board and potentially eliminate another family or leave Cora’s family out. It was a no-win situation.
Some answered un-prayers
I ended up calling my husband, Eric. Then the craziest thing happened. He said, “Would she want to go to a hockey game on Saturday [the next night] instead?” I was starting to get frustrated with him because I thought he wasn’t understanding what I was trying to tell him. “She already has tickets for Friday, not Saturday,” I replied.
Eric then said, “Well, I have free hockey tickets for Saturday night.”
Me: “What?!”
Eric: “I can give her hockey tickets. I was given free hockey tickets for Saturday. I can give them to her. We aren’t going to use them.”
Me: “Wait. You have hockey tickets?” (Sometimes I’m a little slow!)
Eric: “They’re sitting right here on my desk. I’m looking at them right now.”
Me: “That’s crazy! You NEVER get free hockey tickets!”
Eric: “Well, see if she wants to do that so that everyone can be at the party. Then see how many tickets she wants, and let me know. I’ll bring them home for you to give to her.”
I got some answered un-prayers right then and there. God had orchestrated an answer to a problem before I even encountered it! I called Cora. She thought it was a great idea. Problem solved. And I was still flabbergasted at how it all worked out so easily!
My sister’s explanation for answered un-prayers
Immediately, I called my other sister, Shawna. “You’ll never guess what happened!” I said. “I just had to call and tell you good news since I’m always calling to vent about bad things. You deserve to hear the good stuff too!” Laughingly, I told her the story and my shock of how it all worked out. “And I didn’t even pray about it!” I told her.
Her typical sisterly wisdom then followed (I can always count on her for that!). She said when we walk closely with God we often don’t even have to pray, and He’ll work things out for us. It’s because we’re already so close to Him, He’ll just do things for us because He knows we would have asked anyway.
Then she said, “It’s kind of like me and Shawn. He brings me a coffee every night, and I don’t even have to ask. He knows me. He knows I’m going to want one every night. We’re in close relationship so he knows me that well. It’s kind of like that with God. He will often take care of the little things without us asking because we’re in close relationship with Him, just like our husbands would.”
Isn’t that a cool way to look at it? 🙂
Take Some Practical Steps For Answered Un-Prayers:
- Relax in the fact that when you walk with God closely, you don’t always have to pray about everything! Think of it like a marriage, like my sister said. (After all, we are called the “bride” of Christ.) When you are in a close relationship, the other knows you so well that they will take care of the little things without you even having to ask.
“For your Creator will be your husband; the LORD of Heaven’s Armies is his name! He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth.” Isaiah 54:5 (NLT)
“Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!” Matthew 6:8 (NLT)
“But for those who are righteous, the way is not steep and rough. You are a God who does what is right, and you smooth out the path ahead of them.” Isaiah 26:7 (NLT)
“Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 (NIV)
- Take some time to stop and think about the times when you’ve had answered un-prayers, and be sure to thank God for them. Don’t take them for granted. Offer praise and gratitude to the One who loves you so much that He answers your prayers that you didn’t even have to pray.
“Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.” Psalm 106:1 (NIV)
Have you had some answered un-prayers? Tell us about it by leaving a comment below.
Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are rude, disrespectful, sarcastic, offensive, or off-topic. By posting on this site you agree to my Comment Policy.
P.S. If you liked this post, you might enjoy receiving new posts delivered right to your inbox each week! Sign up here.
If you know anyone that could benefit from this, please pay it forward! Share this post via the sharing links below. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)
