There’s an old saying that goes, “God always answers prayers in one of three ways: yes, no, or wait.” We can’t always be sure what God will do or why He does what He does. But what if God is saying no to your prayers because something is coming between your relationship with Him? The Bible actually warns us of these things so we can be on our guard against them. Here are some reasons why God may not be answering your prayers.
Unrepented Sin
When we choose to hold on to sin instead of putting those things aside and obeying the Lord, it creates a barrier between us and God. God’s Word always urges us to confess our sins before Him. You might think, Why do I need to confess my sins? I’m already a Christian! Thinking in those terms would be like a husband saying, “Why do I need to apologize to my wife? She’s committed to me.” We don’t confess our sins to get “re-saved,” but we confess them so our relationship is back to where it needs to be.
Come and listen, all who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for me. I cried out to him with my mouth, and praise was on my tongue. If I had been aware of malice in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. However, God has listened; he has paid attention to the sound of my prayer.
-Psalm 66:16-19
Wrong Motives
It’s easy to be selfish. Sometimes we approach God with selfish motives, asking for what we want, when we want it, and we get upset when we don’t get it. Here’s the thing—God knows our thoughts. He knows when we are being selfish or having the wrong motives. When we come before Him in our prayers, we can and should ask for things in faith, but we should do so in the example of Jesus, ultimately praying for and submitting to God’s will and not our own.
You ask and don’t receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.
-James 4:3
Ignoring God’s Word
God has given us His Word, and He expects us to follow it. Many believe they can live however they want and God will still answer their prayers. While God may, at times, answer the prayers of those who are far from Him purely out of His grace, we can’t expect Him to do so if we ignore what He says.
Anyone who turns his ear away from hearing the law—even his prayer is detestable.
-Proverbs 28:9
Dear friends, if our hearts don’t condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive whatever we ask from him because we keep his commands and do what is pleasing in his sight.
–1 John 3:21-22
Husbands mistreating their wives
God cares how we treat people. More specifically, God cares how husbands treat their wives. In fact, it’s so important to God that He turns His ear away from an uncaring husband. Husbands, we are called to love our wives as Christ loved the church. He gave Himself for her and did everything to care for her and see her be made righteous. God expects no less from us toward our wives.
Husbands, in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with a weaker partner, showing them honor as coheirs of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
-1 Peter 3:7
Lack of faith
I want to be careful with this one, because many people throughout the years have been told that God isn’t answering their prayers because of their lack of faith. That moved them to pray harder and try as much as they could to believe that God would do it. When God still didn’t answer their prayer, it left them disappointed.
When my dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2012, many people began praying and believing that God would heal him. He passed away in 2013. I don’t believe that my dad wasn’t healed because of a lack of faith. I trust that God had a different plan that we still don’t fully understand. God sometimes answers, “No,” for reasons that are beyond our comprehension.
That being said, the Bible does say that if we want God to answer our prayers, we must come to Him in full faith, believing He can do whatever we ask. I know I mentioned this earlier in a positive light, but I think we have to be careful with the phrase, “Not my will but Your will.” That phrase can certainly help us make sure we aren’t asking for something selfishly. However, that phrase also can be used as a safety net or cop-out because we don’t really believe God can or will do what we’re asking of Him. Only you can determine where your heart is on this. But our God can do the impossible. Be sure when you pray, you are believing and trusting Him to do it.
Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God—who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly—and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord, being double-minded and unstable in all his ways.
-James 1:5-8
Struggling with something on this list? There’s one prayer God ALWAYS hears—the prayer of repentance. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, God will forgive and restore us with incredible mercy and grace when we turn back to Him.
