Why God Answers Prayers (Part 1 of 4)

I read something amazing again from the Paul David Tripp book I noted in an earlier post (A Shelter in the Time of Storm - Meditations on God and Trouble). The ideas that he presents in this collection of essays on Psalm 27 are so good that I am planning on referencing many of them from time to time in the coming months. In fact, I'm going to spend the next three posts just on Psalm 27:7:

"Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!"

But why should God be gracious? Why should He answer us? Surely we have no 'right' to demand a response from the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings. He is the Creator of all, we are the creatures. Even those who profess faith in Him are continually returning to Him asking for forgiveness for the same old sins day after day. We have no bargaining power. We don't have anything that He needs. So where does our hope come from? Tripp has a good answer to this question:

"God is his own reason for answering. Prayer finds its hope not in the qualifications of the one praying, but in the character and plan of the God who is hearing. He answers because of who he is... Your hope in prayer is never found in you; it is always found in him."

Tripp then outlines several particular attributes of God that help us to understand why God WILL answer us. See you tomorrow with the first one.

Until then, let's start meditating on this awesome God we serve.