Prayer is the primary proof that you trust in God. Whenever you pray and however you may pray, the message you are sending is "God, I put my trust in you." Prayer is the most wonderful thing because through this you see the manifestations of your wishes, dreams, and aspirations in life. Miracles unfolded. Diseases are healed. Needs are met. They are almost like "magic words." However, it could also be the most frustrating, the most disappointing, and the most painful thing of all. That is when prayers are not answered. They just bounce off the ceiling. They do not penetrate through the roof, let alone reaches the heavenly abode. In a way you can say that although prayer is the best thing of all, it could also be the worst thing of all, if we don't understand.
The prophet Jeremiah had a very bad experience on praying. He said in Lamentations 3:5-9 NLT
"He has made my skin and flesh grow old. He has broken my bone He has besieged and surrounded me with anguish and distress. He has buried me in a dark place, like those long dead. He has walled me in, and I cannot escape He has bound me in heavy chains. And though I cry and shout, he has shut out my prayers. He has blocked my way with a high stone wall; he has made my road crooked."
Aghast ! God blocked his prayers. How would you feel if your friends blocked you on facebook? Or your family members blocked you on their cellphones? That's not an easy feeling to sit with, is it? And how would you feel when God blocked your prayers or simply unfriended you? Jeremiah experienced that. For sure, it is devastating.
Job also lamented that he cried out but God blocked him (Job 19:7-8 NLT). To add insult to injury, he was given exactly the opposite of what he was praying for. He had a regular practice of burning offering for each one of his children, so that God would protect them (Job 1:5-6) But a messenger came to tell that all of his children died when a powerful wind swept in from the wilderness and hit the house on all sides. He prayed for his children to be protected but all of them died. You might think that it would have been less painful if he did not pray at all.
BEWARE OF YOUR "RIGHTEOUS FRIENDS"
Do not be quick in opening heart to your friends. Most of them are well-intent and they love you so much. They want you to be saved. So they will give their unsolicited advice which is more often than not will not help you in crisis. Job had three loving friends - Zophar, Bildad, & Eliphaz. They are the three stooges. They were very much concerned of Job, but they saw things on a different perspective. They defended God. They were saying that these things happened to Job because he was not righteous. That he is wicked. What they were saying is Job doesn't have to complain to God because it is all his fault. Do you know what they said about Job's children? They deserved it because they sinned against God (Job 1:8 NLT) Ouch! that hurts to the core. It is like having a wound, and your friend poked it with a knife, rotated the knife inside to dig a deeper hole and then put salt in it.
These people are legalistic, judgmental, and do not understand what a spiritual crisis is.
THE DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL
So what is this phenomenon that seemingly God blocked your prayers? That He is distant? That God is absent? Mystics call it the "Dark night of the soul." Some christian writers call it the "winter of the heart." It is also a spiritual dryness or aridity of the spirit. When you pray, you do not feel God's presence. It is so dry. These are moments that you wish that days were nights, and nights were days. At times it mimics depression or anxiety. However, it is a common experience for God's people. King David said
My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Why are you so far away when I groan for help?
Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer.
Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief.
After about 500 years later, a descendant of David suffered from the same phenomenon. This time on the cross and he cried also with a loud voice the prayer of David “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
This "abandonment" is baffling and is difficult to understand. But it is certainly part of our spiritual evolution. This is a part of any love relationship. The more that you are pulled away from God, the more you have become love-sick. How long does dark night last? No one knows for sure. But it is sure that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and God would never forget us. Never. God said
“Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child?
Can she feel no love for the child she has borne?
But even if that were possible,
I would not forget you! (Isa. 49:15)
If ever he abandoned us, the Bible assures that it is only for a brief moment (Isa.54:7) and He will take us again in his loving arms.