I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope. (Psalm 130:5, N.K.J.V.)

A little boy asked his father to buy him a gold watch. When the father didn’t seem to acknowledge the request, the boy took it as a cold denial and dropped the matter. Ten years later, however, the father called the son to him and said, “Son, here is that gold watch you asked me for.” The son was dumbfounded but managed to get out the words, “But father, I thought you turned down that request all those years ago.” The father replied, “No, I didn’t turn it down. I just knew better than to grant it until you were old enough to properly take care of a gold watch.”

God responds to a prayer request in one of three ways. #1: He says a flat-out, “No” to the request. #2: He says, “Yes” and soon grants the request. #3: He says, “Yes, but you have to wait for My perfect timing.” You see, God’s delays are not the same thing as His denials. Sometimes you just have to be patient until He sees that you are truly ready for your request to be granted.

So, I ask you this simple question: Is there a specific request that you have asked God to grant, one to which He hasn’t said a flat-out “No”? Then keep looking to Him in faith and expect Him to one day, in His wise timing, grant that request. Don’t stop expecting just because it’s been a while since you made the request. God never forgets, and it could just be that your “gold watch” is on its way right now.