I:60 God is not a Magic Wand nor is a Genie in a Lamp

God is not a Magic Wand nor is He a Genie in a Lamp.


I pray and pray, why doesn’t God just fix it? I mean, it would benefit both He and I and probably others around me?
It is a question often asked by all of us at some point in our lives. There have been many times in my life when I have asked these questions and been almost disrespectful in my frustration while praying to God. I’ve come to Him in complete surrender, asking Him to take from me a burden or weakness in my life and His answers are not the answers I wanted. But as a man who just turned 57, I have had the opportunity to look back and see those answers from a different perspective. In the past 50 plus years, I see how faithful He has been. Every prayer that I have prayed to Him has been answered with my best interest in His mind . At the time of the prayer I could not see His wisdom. God is not used as a magic wand or a genie in a lamp. He doesn’t make deals, nor does He compromise by meeting us halfway. It’s either all or nothing with God. Though He is patient, merciful, and loving, God has standards and holds everyone and everything to those standards, including His promises. Christianity is not magical, hocus pocus ta-da fixes, but a complete trust and surrender in Jesus Christ. When you say to Him, “I surrender and I give you my life,” you are saying, "Your will be done, I trust you with my entire life and those in it, whether the answer is loud and clear or in complete silence.” Learning to trust God is a wild ride at times and it’s part of our pilgrimage as we travel through this world. Paul the apostle reminds us that we must trust and have peace in God’s decisions. Paul’s prayers and letters reek of his desperate need for God’s counsel. One of Paul's prayer request stands out most to me. Paul writes this;

“So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭12‬:‭7‬-‭10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Whatever Paul’s weakness was, we really don’t know, but the point is clear: “God is sufficient and His answers are final.” We can’t manipulate God or wine him to death. His answers are alway correct and for His glory. Don’t succumb to the lie that Satan uses in using your weaknesses to disqualify your services to God, rather go to God. Seek Him and He will sustain you. Satan does not want Christians to discover this. He want you to be inoperable and shamed. We are weak, but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me.

Go into 2026 headfirst, diving into the ministry that Christ has purposed you for. Don’t back down because of what Satan whispers in your ear, but rise and be a Kingdom builder.

Below is an old country song for some of you and I’m not promoting Garth Brooks as a holy man but his song does bring some truth to the above topic.

"Unanswered Prayers"

Just the other night at a hometown football game
My wife and I ran into my old high school flame
And as I introduced them the past came back to me
And I couldn't help but think of the way things used to be
She was the one that I'd wanted for all times
And each night I'd spend prayin' that God would make her mine
And if he'd only grant me this wish I wished back then
I'd never ask for anything again
Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers
Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs
That just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care
Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers
She wasn't quite the angel that I remembered in my dreams
And I could tell that time had changed me
In her eyes too it seemed
We tried to talk about the old days
There wasn't much we could recall
I guess the Lord knows what he's doin' after all
And as she walked away and I looked at my wife
And then and there I thanked the good Lord
For the gifts in my life
Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers
Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs
That just because he may not answer doesn't mean he don't care
Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered
Some of God's greatest gifts are all too often unanswered...
Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers