Have you ever prayed for something for so long, only to feel like you’re receiving no response from God? Has it affected your relationship with Him? Has your prayer life become centered around this one thing?

As I am writing this, Michael and I are approaching the two-and-a-half-year mark of waiting and searching for a place to call home. At the end of the day, we truly cannot complain. We have a roof over our heads, running water, and electricity, and we also have the best landlords around. We are abundantly blessed, regardless of whether we find a home tomorrow or three years from now.

We know this, yet we ask anyway. We get frustrated and impatient, and we question why God’s timeline is taking so much longer than we think it should.

If you have an unanswered prayer and have lost touch with the Lord as a result of your disappointment and frustration, I am here to tell you there is a better way.

This way is not found by trusting in your timing but in the Lord’s, despite your confusion or disappointment. It is found by clinging to hope, dwelling in truth, and seeking His face in the midst of your waiting. There is purpose and beauty in the waiting.

As Michael and I have continued to pray and ask for a house to raise our family in, we are reminded that a house cannot provide what only God can. The tangible things we long to give our children simply cannot compare to the eternal things our good Father offers. As we hold this truth near and continue to pray and ask, we grow in our trust of God’s undoubtedly perfect timing. Through our praying and asking, we are becoming more confident and content in proclaiming, “Your will be done.” And so we will keep praying, we will keep asking, and we will keep growing.

If you have wandered from the Good Shepherd due to disappointment with an unanswered prayer, remember that “He does not withhold any good thing from His people” (Psalm 84:11). It is easy to forget this in the midst of our waiting, but we must recall and rejoice in it. Again, there is purpose and beauty in our waiting.

When you find yourself tempted to take matters into your own hands as a means to achieve the outcome you desire, remember that God does not need a backup plan. And neither do you.

God knows what we need when we need it. He knows us better than we will ever know ourselves! If He leads us into a time of waiting—no matter how long—we can take heart in the truth that it is truly for our good (Romans 8:28).

How, then, can we wait on God without living in a place of constant frustration and impatience? I love this question. Its answer is this:

When God is our ultimate delight, we can wait well.

This does not mean we will not struggle, because we will. Thankfully, when that happens, we have great examples to look to in Scripture:

• The Israelites waited for God to free them from slavery (Exodus 2).
• Simeon and Anna waited for the Messiah (Luke 2:25-38).
• Hannah waited for a baby (1 Samuel 1).
• Elijah waited for rain (1 Kings 18).
• Job waited for his suffering to end (Job 7:3).
• Paul waited to be released from prison (Acts 25).

So, my friend, as you continue to faithfully pray—whether for a family member’s salvation, healing, a way out of a desert season, a change in your career, you name it—know that you are held in the hands of a faithful and mighty God who hears you and has not, and will never, fail you. Your asking is not in vain.

Your unanswered prayer is an invitation from God to trust in the unknown.

Adapted from She Delights: Cultivate a Life of Joy for the One Who Reigns & Sustains by Elle Cardel (Tyndale, April 22, 2025).

*For deeper reflection, listen to Psalm 84 today!

Enjoy our interview with Elle today!