Weekly Update// Pastor Chris

Dear Asbury Family, 

Happy Thursday! I hope your week has been going well. 

This Sunday in worship (May 9) we’ll honor moms and mom-like figures for Mother’s Day. We’ll also continue our journey through our series on prayer called “Deep to Deep: Diving into the Mystery of Prayer.” This Sunday we’ll take up the question of unanswered prayer. Certainly, of all the dilemmas we face while praying, unanswered prayer is the more difficult (maybe the most difficult) among them. Why does God seem to answer some prayers but not others?

For many of us, unanswered prayer can be downright painful. However, it’s also confusing when we consider some of Jesus’ words about prayer. In a nutshell, Jesus seemed to indicate that unanswered would never exist. For example, take a listen to what Jesus says in the following four passages. 

Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt . . . You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen.  You can pray for ANYTHING, and if you have faith, you will receive it.”
Matthew 21:21-22 (NLT, emphasis added) 

“I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning ANYTHING you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you.”
Matthew 18:19 (NLT, emphasis added)  

“I tell you, you can pray for ANYTHING, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.”
Mark 11:24 (NLT, emphasis added) 

 “But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for ANYTHING you want, and it will be granted!”
John 15:7 (NLT, emphasis added) 

Obviously, we don’t always receive what we ask for in prayer. How then do we make sense of Jesus’ words? We’ll examine that question this Sunday as well as make some other observations about unanswered prayer. If you’ve ever struggled with unanswered prayer or wondered about this difficult topic, I hope you won’t miss this Sunday’s message.

Prayer is a mystery, but it's also a channel that God invites us to explore. I encourage you to come explore prayer with us at 9:30am (contemporary) or 11am (traditional).

Have a great weekend! 
Blessings,
Chris