My Grandma passed away in 2001, but she still remains vivid in my mind. She loved her Lord and prayed all the time. She would talk to us about God a lot and I knew that her faith was strong.
I don’t remember what was going on in my life at that time, but I remember telling her that everything was going to turn out because I had been praying to God about it and God answers our prayers.
She started cracking up laughing. (She had a great sense of humor and liked to tease me sometimes).
“Ohhh!” she said, still laughing. “God has a plan for everything and already has his mind made up what he’s going to do.”
This surprised me. I knew Grandma prayed every day and strongly believed in prayer.
“If you don’t believe prayer changes anything,” I asked, “then why do you pray all the time?”
“Because he tells me too!” she answered.
Hmmm. Good answer. It’s hard to argue with Grandma’s wisdom. At that time in my life, I took passages like John 14: 14 to heart.
“You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”
Later on in life I realized, that both Grandma and I were right and we were wrong. Jesus was talking to the disciples at that time and he gave them power to do miracles. He doesn’t grant that power to everyone. Yes, he always answers our prayers, but not always how we want him to. The apostle, Paul, said he asked the Lord to remove the thorn in his side and he was told “My grace is sufficient for thee.” God had his reasons for not granting Paul this request, even though Paul did many miracles in Jesus’ name for other people.
Grandma prayed to God out of love for him and obedience; not because she wanted to get something from him. Her heart was definitely in the right place. I’m sure God was pleased with her attitude and motives. What she was missing was the fact that God does sometimes change his mind because of prayer. There are several examples of this in the bible.
Always pray. God hears your prayers and will answer them in the way that he thinks is best. Also…
Pray because he tells you too!!!
Michigan Mary 
Nice post about your grandma and I see why you said my post reminded you of what she said. Nice to see the pics too!
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Thank you. I’m not a photographer and I was even worse back then, but… I still love those pictures. They bring back wonderful memories.
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Mary, thanks for talking about your Grandmother. I lost mine in1998. But she lives within all of us as we struggle to hang on to her spirituality strength positive attitude and love. Happy Thanksgiving and much love
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Grandparents are adults that you can giggle and laugh with when you’re a child and an adult. I believe your Grandma’s strength lives in you. They always share their best with their grandchildren! Love and blessings this Thanksgiving!
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You make a good point about praying. We should pray out of love and obedience – not to submit a wish list! I am probably guilty of that many times over! My grandma passed away in 2003, and like you and your Grandma, she is still very much alive in my mind. She had a lot of faith and taught me much about how to live my life. We were lucky to have such grandmothers!
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lol I did make it sound like asking for things is wrong, but that’s not true. God loves it when we come to him with praise and even requests. Keep submitting your wish lists. I do it too! And yes, Grandmothers are the best!
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Oh, I didn’t think you made asking for things sound wrong, but you did make me think about the “balance” of my prayers. I think that’s a good thing!
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Exactly! We need balance. He says you do not receive because you do not ask. He wants us to ask. He also likes to be thanked and praised – just like we do. Balance is good.
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The memories of my grandmothers will always occupy a special place in my heart. Their strong but gentle hand guided my early days and helped to instill in me respect and compassion toward others. Thank you for you thoughts on prayers. There is no doubt God answers prayers.
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And that is such a comfort to know God hears us and cares for us little humans. It’s kind of amazing when you think about it.
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