Journaling: Proof That God Answers Prayers

Journaling sounds simple — until you try it. In this episode of A Few Minutes with God, host Felice Gerwitz issues a challenge that she calls life-changing: start writing down what God is saying to you.

Journaling: Proof That God Answers Prayers

 

Felice opens her own journal to an entry dated May 2, 2015, where she had recorded Judith 9:11 — “Your strength is not in numbers, nor does your power depend upon stalwart men, but you are the God of the lowly, the helper of the oppressed, the supporter of the weak, and the protector of the forsaken, the savior of those without hope.” She had claimed that verse in prayer over her son during what must have been a hopeless situation. Years later, when she showed him the entry, neither of them could remember what the crisis had even been.

That, she says, is the point. When we wonder whether God hears us, a journal answers back. Felice shares how she taught her children that God always hears — He says yes, He says no, or He says not right now — and reflects on the humbling truth that we can only describe God in our own feeble, human words. One of her pastors taught her to pray, “Lord, I praise You and I thank You and I love You as You know Yourself to be.”

She also shares the news she received that day: the passing of a close high school friend who had been ill for twenty years and belonged to a faith that did not believe in medical intervention. While Felice doesn’t share that belief, she was struck by her friend’s unwavering testimony that God could heal her — a reminder that God heals in many ways: through miracles, through the hands of doctors, and through the medicines He created. The episode closes with a prayer of praise and blessing over every listener and their family.

A companion episode covers the practical how-tos of setting up a journal.

Key Takeaways

  • Journaling lets you look back and see answered prayer you’d otherwise forget.
  • God always hears — He answers yes, no, or not right now.
  • We can only speak of God in human words; He is far greater than our understanding.
  • Praying Scripture over your children is a powerful way to intercede for them.
  • As Christians, we are never without hope — our hope is God Himself.
  • God heals in many ways: through miracles, through doctors, and through medicine He created.
  • Free will means our decisions are our own — trust is what we bring to God.

Scripture Referenced

Judith 9:11 — “Your strength is not in numbers, nor does your power depend upon stalwart men, but you are the God of the lowly, the helper of the oppressed, the supporter of the weak, and the protector of the forsaken, the savior of those without hope.”

Quotable

“When you journal, you can go back, you can look at past entries, and then you will be so amazed at all of the times that the Lord answered prayer.”

“He always hears your prayers. And He either says yes, He says no, or He says not right now.”

“Lord, I praise You and I thank You and I love You as You know Yourself to be.”

Sponsors

Media AngelsA Few Minutes with God, a novel written for children and teens about a struggling family, the gift of hearing God, and the blessing that follows. Give your children the priceless gifts money can’t buy: your time, and the habit of listening to God. Visit mediaangels.com.

CTC Math — A comprehensive K–12 math curriculum built around short, engaging video tutorials that break complex topics into bite-sized pieces. Built for real understanding, not memorization, and flexible enough for homeschooling or after-school support. Start your free trial at ctcmath.com.

Connect

Call to Action

Start journaling this week — even one line a day. Then come back in a year and read it. If this episode encouraged you, share it with a friend and leave a review so more listeners can find A Few Minutes with God.

Never Underestimate Prayer (Replay)

Never Underestimate Prayer | Do you think your prayers never get answered? I believe you should never underestimate prayer! In this podcast, Felice discusses ways we can shortchange the Lord and what a blessing it is to realize that our prayers have been answered | #christianpodcast #catholicpodcast #Godandmercy #mercifulGod #CelebrateChristmasandAdvent #CelebrateChristmas #NeverUnderestimatePrayerNever Underestimate Prayer ~ Episode 281

Do you think your prayers never get answered? I believe you should never underestimate prayer! In this podcast, Felice discusses ways we can shortchange the Lord and what a blessing it is to realize that our prayers have been answered.

Thanks to our sponsor – Media Angels, you can find curriculum as well as books such as One More Child and A Few Minutes with God.

Before you ask, no, my prayers do not always get answered, well–let me rephrase that. They do get answered but not how I would like them to be answered. I hope that makes you feel better. But that is no excuse to underestimate the power of prayer. We can pray, sometimes for years (or it seems like years), with no results.

Never Underestimate Prayer

If you haven’t done, so already, I invite you to listen to a previous podcast I did that is on the topic of forgiveness. What does this have to do with prayer? Well, I prayed for many years, and it turned out to be seven years, for a situation that happened in my life. Basically, I was praying for a person who had hurt me. Every time I was upset or felt helpless, I asked the Lord to bless this person. Did I feel like praying was a blessing? No, but felt led by the Lord to pray it anyway.

I invite you to do this. If you are upset with a person or hold a grudge against them, it is always best to go to the Lord in prayer and to pray for this person. The reason is that the enemy dislikes it when we pray for someone. The enemy wants us to be upset and unkind in our thoughts and in our actions, and when we reverse that and pray for a person who we believe has wronged us, then the enemy has no power over us and usually leaves us. In my case, a chance meeting showed me that all of that animosity and hurt feelings and everything else that I was feeling was gone.

This was truly a miracle, and seven years–wow! That’s why we should never underestimate prayer! I didn’t even realize it had been so long. However, the outcome was such a blessing in my life and one that I wanted to share with all of you. It isn’t always easy to admit when we are at fault, and holding grudges and unforgiveness in my heart is an example of being at fault. None of us are exempt from sin.

I learned through perseverance and prayer that the Lord always answers our prayers, and we should never underestimate prayer or his power in our lives, we feel defeated and alone and that no one hears us or understands us, and I think that’s what leads so many people into sin —they think that no one understands them, that God doesn’t hear them until finally a situation crops into their lives that they feel is an answer— but instead the situation becomes worse than the solution.

Friends, we must be steadfast and continue to pray. When I look at the lives of the Saints, those holy men and women who’ve gone before us. I see their lives are marked with struggle, yet they continue on and persevere. What a wonderful example that is for each one of us. Can you imagine if Abraham had given up or if David had stopped worshiping God after sinning? Sure, it took him some time to repent, but eventually God, God wants our hearts and minds to be single, focused and living the best life we can keep him at our center. The key is repentance and prayer.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

That is a scripture we should commit to memory!

One of my sons started listening to a podcast from a businessman.  He has been very successful, and he wants to share his success with others who are striving to live lives that he calls “striving for excellence.” I may have mentioned this to you in a previous podcast, but it’s worth mentioning again, especially since it has encouraged my son to strive for excellence. I explained that when we strive for excellence we’re striving to put on the mind of Christ. Excellence only comes from God, the same way we receive grace or blessings in our lives. It is a pure gift.

When we strive to live each day the best way we can, we should offer up our day to the Lord. Otherwise, are attempting the impossible, especially with daily temptations.  Striving to do something on your own is a recipe for failure. How can we strive to put on the mind of Christ? One way is to focus on what is important each and every day to our day to the Lord and ask him to come into our lives in a deeper way. I often pray this prayer. I don’t know how successful I am, but I do ask the Lord to come into my life in a deeper way.

We should set aside some time for prayer. How often you can do this depends on what is going on in your life; I know people like the idea of downtime, but what better way than spending time with God? On the days that I can’t spend time with God, I offer my day to him. I try to focus on what is important that day and give it the rest to him.
We can make our lives a prayer to God, and in that way, even if we are not verbalizing our intent, God knows our heart and perhaps will bring a scripture verse to mind or maybe a song of praise. Challenge yourself to memorize a scripture verse this week. Then another one next week. Soon you will have four verses memorized by the end of the month. Can you imagine if we did that monthly?  We’d have 48 verses memorized by the end of the year.

Colossians 3:16 (Read on air.)

Gratitude And Prayer

Can we sing gratitude? I’m sure if we were all in a room together and sharing about how the Lord has answered our prayers, we would be amazed at each of our stories. Each one of us has hardships that we bear, but each one of us has been blessed whether or not we realize it. If not, perhaps you can pray for an attitude check. Praising God in all things, seeing the good in our lives and those around us. This takes prayer, and it takes grace!

One way we can see how we are doing in our faith walk is to look at our lives as a glass that is half full or half empty which is it? Is your life half full, or is it half empty? If you believe your life is half full, meaning that you are blessed, rather than half empty, meaning you are lacking, that is one indication. No, it’s not an exact science, but it is an illustration that shows how we can look at things optimistically or pessimistically. The choice is ours. Believing that God hears all of our prayers is really Important.

Ultimately, when we pray, it is up to the Lord; if he answers the way we would like him to answer or not, if it is a prayer that is important to our salvation, those are the ones that are answered the most. For example, Lord, give me more faith, our Lord, bring me closer to you. Remember, when we pray, it is not a feeling; it is a decision we make. We make a decision to pray similarly to making a decision to forgive ourselves as well as others as we are closer and closer to the Advent season. As I record this, and it will probably play for the first time during December, the season of Advent, let us call to mind how important it is to pray to the Lord and offer our daily struggles to him.

Your challenge this week is to look at answered prayer as a gift and give God all the glory that He rightly deserves.