The YouVersion Bible App announced its Verse of the Year today, which is the verse that was most shared, saved, and highlighted in 2024:

Philippians 4:6-7:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."

Many people experience anxiety, uncertainty, and fear at some level. We all need help from God.

Here is the good news: God always answers prayer. This is why Paul encourages us to "let our requests be made known to God."

It would be unthinkable for God to be indifferent to our petitions, pleas, and cries for help.

However, it often feels like God is silent or distant, primarily because He doesn't respond in the way or on the timeline we expect.

Sometimes, God answers with a resounding "Yes."

At other times, He responds with a generous "Yes + even more!"

Often, God says "No."

Most of the time, we hear "Not yet."

Delayed, Not Denied

I am reminded of a scene from Daniel Chapter 10. Daniel is distressed and pleading with God for answers, but day after day, he receives nothing. Then, suddenly, an angel appears, bringing the comfort and support Daniel needs. The scripture reveals:

"Then he said to me, 'Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words. The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia, and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come.'" [vv. 10-14]

Daniel cried out to God, God heard him, and God answered him. However, the answer was delayed. For twenty-one agonizing days, Daniel waited in the dark.

More often than not, God's help and response are delayed. The question is, why does God allow or even orchestrate these delays?

I contend that in God's economy, waiting for an answer is often part of the answer itself. Sometimes, the delay proves to be a gracious gift—it protects us from the disaster we're about to walk into. I can't express how much pain, heartache, and time I would have saved had I just waited...

This is why Thomas Watson said, "Patience makes the Christian invincible."

J.C. Ryle noted, "All true Christians must be content to wait for their wages."

The psalmist encourages us: "Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!" [Psalm 27:14]

How does waiting strengthen us? How does waiting encourage our heart? The Puritan Richard Sibbes offers wisdom on why God makes us wait:

1. To test our faith.

Much like the Canaanite woman whose faith was tested by Jesus, God may delay His answers to strengthen our resolve, cultivating steadfastness (Matthew 15:21-28). This steadfastness, in time, helps us become "perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:3).

2. To humble our pride.

Just as God did with the Israelites, His delays can lead us to confront our pride, expose our true motives, and foster deeper dependence on Him (Deuteronomy 8:3). Remember, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6).

3. To heighten our desire.

Like the persistent widow whose prayers grew more fervent until she got what she needed, sometimes God waits to inspire a more intense pursuit of Him (Luke 18:1-8).

4. To deepen our appreciation for the answer.

What comes easily is often taken for granted, while that which is hard-won tends to be treasured more deeply. God’s delays can enhance our gratitude for the answers when they finally arrive.

Show Up. Keep Asking. Keep Waiting

Have you been crying out to God? Is there a burden, a need, or a request that feels stuck? Perhaps you've prayed for days, weeks, months, or even years.

Remember that God's delay is not indifference, no matter how long the silence. He has heard your cries, and while His answers may feel delayed, they are on their way.

He may have paused His response to grow your faith.

He may be waiting to humble your pride.

He might be inviting you to thirst more intensely for Him.

God has not overlooked you. He has heard your pleas and answered your prayers—in ways you might not yet grasp. Keep reaching out to Him, holding on to the promise of Jesus:

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened" (Matthew 7:7-8).

Remember, the most courageous thing we can do is show up—again and again. God delights in our presence and pursuit of Him. In 2025, I challenge you to keep showing up. Bring your needs to Him, and pose the tough questions; God is never bothered by your persistence.

Keep asking.

Keep knocking.

God has heard your request.

God has answered your plea.

Help is on the way.

All faucets no drains,

— Harp