When your Internet is slow

I started on the Internet when we still used dial-up modems. I think my first Internet provider had 3-4 phone numbers we could use to connect. It worked fine during the day, but when kids got home from school you could forget getting online until around 10:30 PM or later. They later began to add more numbers, but getting online was always tricky until the dial-up system went away.

Today, most of us are used to instant Internet connections. Modem speeds continue to increase making our computers operate faster and faster...until they don't. Like me, I'm sure you've sat in front of your computer at times watching the little clock moving ever so slowly as it tried to connect you to the site you wanted and growing more and more frustrated by the minute having to wait. That frustration only increases when you get the dreaded message "Not Responding."

We are not a people who enjoys waiting. We want instant coffee, instant entertainment, instant gratification and instant answers to prayer. The first three are often possible, but the fourth one is out of our control. We can pray our prayers, but God decides if and when He will answer them. Seldom is His timing the same as ours.

I doubt that I am the only believer who becomes frustrated when God does not answer his prayers as quickly and completely as I want. Some Christians have told me that is their biggest frustration in Christianity. As their prayers seem to go unanswered they begin to wonder about God's love for them or His ability to intercede on their behalf. Some may even question their own salvation.

Explaining everything God does is impossible. If I could do that I would be God, and I'm not. God is the one with perfect omniscience, not us. He alone knows what is best for us long-term, and sometimes the things we think we want would do us more harm in the future. In His perfect love for us, He sometimes says no to our requests. At other times He delays His answer so we will be better prepared to receive it.

While we may not always trust our Internet provider, we can trust God's heart and His love for us. When the answers to our prayers are delayed just know He is working out the best possible answer that will benefit us and others the most.