Does God really answer prayers?

Yes. Prayer is one of our greatest privileges as God’s children, and even if God doesn’t seem to answer your prayers at first, don’t stop praying.  God loves you, and no prayer goes unanswered.  In Luke chapter 18 we read that Jesus said, God (who is righteous and does care for us) hears the prayers of His people, and we must never give up.

But it's important to highlight just 2 things:

1) The Bible says "When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures".  We pray selfish prayers when what God really wants is for us to pray selfless prayers.  When was the last time you spent all your prayer time praying for someone else?

2) Realize that sometimes God is actually answering our prayers when we don’t realize it — and the reason is because His answer may be “No” or “Wait.”  Yes, we think we know what’s best for us—but God sees the whole picture, and sometimes He lovingly refuses to give us what we request, because He knows it isn’t according to His perfect plan.

You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes you might find
You get what you need

The Rolling Stones debuted those lyrics in 1969.  While they are certainly Rock ’N Roll legends, they do manage to tap into a Biblical truth along the way.
Click here to listen to the original recording on DOC Radio.

Remember that prayer is possible because Jesus Christ has removed the barrier between us and God — a barrier caused by our sins. You see, sin separates us from God, and because of that we have no right to come before Him. But by His death on the cross, Christ paid the penalty for our sins and removed the barrier. God then gives us the privilege of coming into His presence when we accept this gift and commit our lives to Christ.

Have you given your life to Him? If not, let your first prayer be one of confession and faith, asking Him to come into your life as your Lord and Savior