On Prayer
Psalm 66, Hebrews 12:4-13
Paula Davis, Contributing Writer

Sometimes God does not answer our prayers in the way we think He should. There may be times when we pray for God to make us more patient, more loving, more understanding, more kind; and it seems like just as soon as we say, “Amen,” then all hell breaks loose in our lives. Sometimes God does not just zap us into the type of Christians He wants us to be, but instead, He brings trials and affliction into our lives to apply just the right amount of pressure to make us conform to His image.
In Psalm 66, the Psalmist begins with praises to God. He praises God for all of His awesome deeds (v.4) and invites everyone to “come and see what God has done” (v.5). He praises God for “turning the sea into dry land” (v.6); He thanks God for “watch[ing] the nations” (v.7); He praises God for “preserving our lives” (v.9), and keeping “our feet from slipping” (v.9), and interestingly, the Psalmist praises God for something we might not often remember to praise God for on the surface: The Psalmist thanks God for “testing us” (v.10). He praises God for affliction saying, “You refined us like silver; you brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs” (v.11). Bringing us into prison! Laying burdens on our backs! What does the Psalmist mean by this?
I don’t think the Psalmist was sleepy or made a mistake when he penned this verse. The Psalmist understood that there may be times when God chooses to make us into the Christians He wants us to be, by subjecting us to the refining fire of affliction. Sometimes God uses the pain of testing to purge away all the impurities that are not consistent with Holy, Godly character. Even though the pain and sorrow may be uncomfortable, discipline is ultimately for our good, so that we may be refined into precious metal; shiny, glowing, and valuable in God’s sight. Similarly Hebrews 12:7 and 11 teaches us, “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children” (v.7) ...“no discipline seems pleasant at the time but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (v. 11).
Yes! The Psalmist praises God for his tests! He praises God for the refining fire that will make him like silver! Don’t get discouraged if you pray for patience and suddenly your spouse, children and co-workers test your patience to new heights and levels never seen before; it may not be pleasant now, but later on, if you have been trained by God’s hand, you will begin to see a harvest of patience in your life. Likewise, please don’t be surprised if you pray to be kinder and gentler and instead of it happening overnight you find yourself in situations that test and train you on a hands-on level about what it means to truly to be kind to others. Hang in there, God is pruning and refining you to produce good fruit. Although the answers to our prayers may not come the way we think they should, they will come. As the Psalmist concludes his praise, “God has surely listened and has heard my prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!” (Ps. 66:19-20). Be encouraged, “[T]he Lord disciplines the one He loves.” (Heb. 12:6)