Unanswered Prayers 要到几时呢？

[Dexu Xia]

How long, Lord, how long?  Psalm 6:3

Are we there yet? Not yet. Are we there yet? Not yet. That was the back-and-forth game we played on the first (and definitely not the last) sixteen-hour trip back home to Arkansas from Colorado when our children were young. Our oldest two kept the game alive and well, and if I had a dollar for every time they asked, well, I’d have a stack of dollars. It was a question my children were obsessed with, but I (the driver) was equally obsessed wondering, Are we there yet? And the answer was, Not yet, but soon.

Truth be told, most adults are asking a variation on that question, although we may not voice it out loud. But we’re asking it for that same reason—we’re tired, and our eyes have grown “weak with sorrow” (Psalm 6:7). We’re “worn out from [our] groaning” (v. 6) about everything from the nightly news to daily frustrations at work to never-ending health problems to relational strains, and the list goes on. We cry out: “Are we there yet? How long, Lord, how long?”

The psalmist knew well that kind of weariness, and he honestly brought that key question to God. Like a caring parent, He heard David’s cries and in His great mercy accepted them (v. 9). There was no shame for asking. Likewise, you and I can boldly approach our Father in heaven with our honest cries of “How long?” and His answer might be, “Not yet, but soon. I’m good. Trust Me.”   

Why are you weary right now and wondering, How long, Lord? What is it about God that shows He’s trustworthy?

Father in heaven, the burdens of this world have me asking, “How long?” Thank You for welcoming such prayers, and please give me the strength to trust You in life’s journey.

耶和华啊，祢要到几时才救我呢？—诗篇6篇3节

我们到了吗？还没有！我们到了吗？还没有！这是孩子们小的时候，我们首次（肯定不是最后一次）从科罗拉多州返回阿肯色州的16小时路程中，与孩子们不断重复的问答游戏。最年长的两个孩子简直乐此不疲，要是他们每问一次，我就可以得到一美元，那么我就有一大叠美钞了。我们到了吗？这是我的孩子们反复提出的问题，而身为司机的我也有同样的疑问，而答案是，还没有！但快到了。

老实说，尽管我们没有大声说出来，但大多数的成年人也常问类似的问题。我们问这个问题的原因是一样的：我们疲惫并“因忧愁眼睛干瘪”（诗篇6篇7节）。举凡各种新闻报导、日常工作的挫折、层出不穷的健康问题、人际关系的压力等等，都使我们“唉哼而困乏”（6节）。我们呼求：“我们到了吗？要到几时呢？上帝啊，要到几时呢？”

大卫清楚了解那种疲惫，他诚实地问上帝这个重要的问题。上帝就像关爱孩子的父母一样，垂听大卫的呼求，并以极大的怜悯接纳他的祷告（9节）。问这个问题并不致令人羞愧，你我也同样可以大胆地来到天父面前，诚实地求问：“要到几时呢？”祂的回答应该是：“还没有，但快了。我是良善的，相信我！”

你现在为何疲惫并疑惑地问：
上帝啊，要到几时呢？
上帝有哪些特质表明祂确实值得信靠？

天父，世上的重担使我向祢求问：
“要到几时呢？”感谢祢接纳我这样的祷告，
求祢加添我力量，让我一生信靠祢。