Does God Answer Our Prayers?

Now, it is both natural and theologically legitimate to make requests of God—to pray for one’s health or the health of a loved one, for help in resisting evil, or with regard to any of the other myriad challenges and tragedies that befall us. But answering requests is not the primary role of God, and many people who believe it is will become disappointed and perhaps even alienated from God.

God’s role is to teach us how to lead a moral and holy life, and how to attain wisdom—hence the Torah [first 5 books of the O.T.] and the rest of the Bible. With regard to unjust suffering, God’s role is to provide a guide for how to reduce man-made suffering in this life, to provide ultimate justice in an afterlife, and to be with us when we suffer. He is most certainly there “when we call out to Him,” as myriad people have experienced when they have suffered, but that does not mean—it cannot mean—that God answers all requests as we would wish. …

Expecting God to give us what we want has led many religious people to feel disappointed in God and then abandon their faith. Ask not what you want from God, but what God wants from you.

Dennis Prager, commentary on Deuteronomy 4:7, pg 46-47 of The Rational Bible, Deuteronomy: God, Blessings, and Curses