"Is it really that God won't listen or that we are only looking for our OWN answers?"

I have been thinking about that a lot. It's all around me. In a lot of the Christian music that I listen to, there are so many lines about, God listening, whether it be, "God are you listening?" or "God can You hear me?" and the list goes on. I never noticed it before. Even before, I had found comfort in such verses, that others were doubting God really listening as well.

Then it hit me. It all came to me in a brief moment. So, what if it really isn't that God's not listening, then what is it?

Well, first of all, I would like to share with you my reasoning that God does listen to us, as Christians, when call out.

One first example, I would like to share with you is in the Old Testament. There are many times that God had conversations with people. First it starts off with Adam and Eve in the garden. He had a meeting with them daily. Another time is in Exodus 6 before and following. Moses has many conversations with God, and God is listening and even speaking back. But really, that was the Old Testament, you may be thinking, and you are right, but here is another example from the new testament, in Matthew 26:42, you hear about Jesus going out in the garden alone to pray. "He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done."" And there are many more examples through the Bible of God speaking to other people. And in order to speak back to these people, He must have heard them.

John wrote in 1 John (I think it was John at least) about God hearing us as well, it reads in 1 John 5:14-15, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him." I think the key word in that verse is according.

I think that so often, we as humans only ask God for something and expect one answers back. What's that answer? It's what we want. Often, in fact too often, I think that we look only for our answers instead of looking at what God could have answers for. We often get so caught up in our own world, that we miss out on God's answers. In 1 Kings, it addresses this matter, in a bold way. (I think at least) "Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper." (19:11-12) I think so often, we look out only for our own answers and what we want, but miss out on what God really wants.

In 1 John, he says God does what is "according to HIS will" and I think that is so important to focus on. I don't think we can look at a situation and only look for our will.

To answer my original question, I think that yes, as humans we look so often at just the answers that we want. Like if we are trying to decide where to go to college, we will only look for the options that we want, but won't look at what God wants, but only focus on Him answering the right way. (that was a really bad example, but I hope you know what I mean) I think that sometimes God answers our prayers in the most wonderful and amazing ways, but so often we think He's not listening because we don't see the change that we want, when really all along, God was simply working out His own plan, instead of ours.

Jeremiah 29:11 ~ "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."