A full day went by, and my prayer had gone unanswered. It was an important prayer too. I knew for sure, that since I had expressed to God how dire our situation was, since I had cried out to Him in all sincerity, practically begged, I KNEW He was obligated to answer my prayer. This prayer, He had to answer it. Still, a full day went by, and His only response was silence.
No miracle.
No dramatic change in our situation.
No sign from God, just silence.
Life was still going on, and I couldn’t hide from it, so I dragged myself out of the house to take care of responsibilities. My drive time is usually when I converse with God. It feels like He takes advantage of the time when I’m strapped to a seat, eyes straight ahead, to get my attention. That’s when He talks and I listen.
I had to slow down to let a car into the lane in front of me. It was a banged up green Toyota with barely enough room to slip into my lane. I eased on the gas and tapped my breaks, and that’s when I noticed his custom license plate. It read, “HVFAITH.”
On this day that my prayers had gone unanswered, in this moment where I’m being driven more out of worry and fear than faith, God seems to be sending me a clear message.
HVFAITH
Could it be? After all the time on my knees, that God is sending a trashed out, however clever, green Toyota to send me a message that if I’ll just “keep on keeping on” everything is going to be okay?
In that moment, with just me and God in the car, I thanked Him out loud. I thanked Him because my hope and the source of my strength is not anchored to the tailgate of a green Toyota. It is anchored in the person of Jesus Christ, His death burial and resurrection. His Word has the final authority on all things in my life, and in His Word He has promised good to me. Even when I can’t see a sign, I am to trust Him completely.
Recently, I read a spiritual blog where a mother wrote about how she explained to her son her interpretation of Biblical instruction concerning sexual immorality. She said she explained to her adolescent son that while the Bible is a great book and full of truth, it’s also old and has been tampered with by interpreters who had political intentions. This is why, she explained, that in their household they would not allow the Word of God to have authority on the matters of sexual purity or the role of women in culture and society.
And in what other areas will we pick and choose to obey Scripture? What guide will her son use, then, as instruction for life? How will he have any assurance as he strives to walk by faith? What text then would you suggest to him as he grows spiritually? Surely you wouldn’t instruct your son to ignore the psalmist who wrote, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments” (Psalm 119:9-10).
If we choose to uproot the authority of Scripture from our lives, then we are left chasing bumper stickers. Along with all its Divine instruction, the Word of God offers to us hope. Hope that there is more to this life. It leads us to the source of eternal life and transforms our minds with Godly wisdom. Without it, we are only as inspired as our Instagram feed and growing roots too shallow to sustain fruitful spiritual growth.
By the time I had arrived at my destination, I realized that, though my prayer had gone unanswered, I still have reason to rejoice. I thanked Him because He is still worthy of praise despite my circumstance. He is still good when I’m having a bad day, and He is giving me the greatest gift we can obtain from Him on this earth, wisdom and understanding.
“Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness” (Col. 2:6).