Did you ever play “Go Fish” when you were child? The great thrill when you drew from the deck was to say “I got what I wanted.” We can treat God like that — believing God hears us when we get what we want. Contrast that with the way that the Letter to the Hebrews describes the Gethsemane scene. In the days when [Jesus] was in the Flesh, he offered prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. He was heard — but he wasn’t saved from death. In the providence of God sometimes are prayers and petitions are not granted but that does not mean that God is ignoring us. Rather, it serves as a reminder that every prayer of petition is, in fact, an act of faith where we throw ourselves into the arms of the One who loves us.
