Does anyone ever feel like God is holding a carrot on a string?

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You know like in the cartoons, where the donkey is made to pull the cart by hanging a carrot on a string in front of it?

Over the last few years I have become more and more turned towards God, doing prayers and other devotions I would have almost been embarrassed to do a couple of years back.

We all pray for various reasons, sometimes for others, and sometimes for ourselves. Whatever the reason, if some of you have been praying a long, long time for something which is still as of yet unanswered, have you ever felt that God was just sitting back, partially testing you but also partially just soaking up the love?
 
CSN said:
You know like in the cartoons, where the donkey is made to pull the cart by hanging a carrot on a string in front of it?

Over the last few years I have become more and more turned towards God, doing prayers and other devotions I would have almost been embarrassed to do a couple of years back.

We all pray for various reasons, sometimes for others, and sometimes for ourselves. Whatever the reason, if some of you have been praying a long, long time for something which is still as of yet unanswered, have you ever felt that God was just sitting back, partially testing you but also partially just soaking up the love?
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No, I don’t believe in a God who demands love and devotion from us by withholding good things from us. For starters it’s not exactly a great tactic - most people get discouraged and turn away from him.
 
It is tough I know, but the truth is, God does not need you. He does not need your love, he does not need you to “pull the cart.” So why would he “trick you” into pulling it by withholding sg from you?

It is you who need him. And he wants you, he loves you with a perfect love which excludes toying with you. Nobody knows the reason why he rewards some and does not reward others with granting what they wish. It is not a “give-and-take” relationship while we are living in this world. There is no “carrot” here! Your reward comes after you die.
 
CSN said:
. Whatever the reason, if some of you have been praying a long, long time for something which is still as of yet unanswered, have you ever felt that God was just sitting back, partially testing you but also partially just soaking up the love?
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not really because in the cases where I have been praying for years for certain intentions, I can very clearly see where the persons I have been praying (including me) for need to take action themselves, need to respond to God’s grace, and at least to outward evidence have not yet done so, therefore no “blame” attaches to God.
 
Nope.
God is my Father. When I’m down, I crawl up into His lap for a cuddle.

The joy of the presence of God (heaven) is the gift of a graceous and generous Father, not something that we earn or merit.
Do the best that you can, knowing that it is never going to be enough.
Do it because it is the sign of your ackowledgement and acceptance of His gift.
The Father will do the rest.

Matthew
 
What little I give to God he multiplies back ten fold.

Jim

“God can not be grasped, except through love.”
 
CSN said:
You know like in the cartoons, where the donkey is made to pull the cart by hanging a carrot on a string in front of it?

Whatever the reason, if some of you have been praying a long, long time for something which is still as of yet unanswered, have you ever felt that God was just sitting back, partially testing you but also partially just soaking up the love?
Click to expand...
No, God is a loving God. He wants to give us all the best.
He will not hold anything good for us.

There maybe reasons for not yet answered prayers:
  • The time is not right yet
  • While you are waiting for God, God is waiting for you. It is up to you to take some action for the desired result.
  • The answer is no.
 
You know like in the cartoons, where the donkey is made to pull the cart by hanging a carrot on a string in front of it?
Click to expand...
:rolleyes: Wow - from these responses you and I must be the only 2 people who ever feel like that.
 
You know like in the cartoons, where the donkey is made to pull the cart by hanging a carrot on a string in front of it?
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:rolleyes: Wow - based on these responses you and I must be the only people who’ve ever felt like that.😃

I feel like I know what you mean. Like I have gotten glimpses of things here and there so that makes me hang on. I feel confident that it was God, because I never would have thought of these things on my own and they changed my life and I can’t go back to how I thought before.

I don’t mean that I doubt God’s love - matter of fact I remember a rush of hope and a feeling of “Yes, there is a God and He loves me!”. That would have been when I first spotted that so called carrot.

I don’t know that its actually that God is holding a carrot out to prompt me to go on - but I now have resolved to think that I just don’t understand what God is trying to tell me. I grasp bits and pieces here and there. God very well may be telling me the entire thing - step by step what I need to do. But I just don’t understand or I can’t process it yet or I’m just scared. Just like if you pour water on the ground…its takes some time to seep into the ground. I think of the water as God’s grace and me as the ground - a really hard ground! So slowly grace will soften me and make its way farther and deeper into my soul. Just like rain on a dried out field of corn. (not the best metaphor, I know)

Terry
 
CSN said:
You know like in the cartoons, where the donkey is made to pull the cart by hanging a carrot on a string in front of it?

Over the last few years I have become more and more turned towards God, doing prayers and other devotions I would have almost been embarrassed to do a couple of years back.

We all pray for various reasons, sometimes for others, and sometimes for ourselves. Whatever the reason, if some of you have been praying a long, long time for something which is still as of yet unanswered, have you ever felt that God was just sitting back, partially testing you but also partially just soaking up the love?
Click to expand...
Yes, I understand! I have been praying for certain individuals a long time.

The other day I let the Lord and Mother Mary “have it.” I probably said too much, but they know my frustration.

OH LORD ARE MY PRAYERS AND CRIES IN VAIN!!!

Still, where else will I go? He has the words of eternal life.
 
CSN said:
…Whatever the reason, if some of you have been praying a long, long time for something which is still as of yet unanswered, have you ever felt that God was just sitting back, partially testing you but also partially just soaking up the love?
Click to expand...
Yes, I have prayed for something for a long, long time that God didn’t give me.

I just wanted to say I have not felt particularly what you said, though I’ve certainly felt other things about God’s attributes or ways that were not true.

Our view of God is distorted with our humanity. And our view has a lot to do with our view of our earthly father. So maybe you can make a connection there with this specific case if you think on it.

Then recognize the imperfections of your earthly father and remember that God is the Most Perfect Loving Father. And think of how a perfect father would be. Would he treat you like a donkey, and have a carrot on a stick for you to follow but never attain?

He does not grant answers to your prayers because you are good enough. You will never be good enough for Him to serve you. He grants answers to your prayers because of Who He Is. He is Love, and He delights in sharing His good gifts with you because He loves you infathomably.

Remember that. There is a possiblity that your view of God could impede your prayers. I don’t know the motive of your heart, but I know that if, for example, you were striving to be good enough, or felt in your heart you were certainly deserving of your request, then perhaps that might impede God, because if He granted the desire He would be reinforcing your wrong faith (faith in your own deserving, rather than faith in the Good God who grants gifts because of His own goodness). I think He would want you to have faith in the real Him, who is Love and Mercy.
 
Margita said:
It is tough I know, but the truth is, God does not need you. He does not need your love, he does not need you to “pull the cart.” So why would he “trick you” into pulling it by withholding sg from you? …
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I agree that He does not trick us. And it must be true that God is complete and therefore does not need us. But I do believe that God who made us and loves us thirsts for our love in return. Why else would the first commandment be, “Love God with all your heart, soul and mind?”

I think that when Christ on the cross said, “I thirst,” He was thirsting for our love.
 
Eliza10 said:
But I do believe that God who made us and loves us thirsts for our love in return. Why else would the first commandment be, “Love God with all your heart, soul and mind?”

I think that when Christ on the cross said, “I thirst,” He was thirsting for our love.
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I believe he gave us this commandment for our own good. He wants US to be happy through loving Him - which is a sign of His infinite, generous, sacrificing love for us.
But I completely agree with you - Christ is thirsting for our love. What I meant was that He is not dependent on us the way we are dependent on Him.
 
Sometimes I act like I’m the one with the carrot on a stick, but the good Lord promptly takes it out of my hands and tans my hide with it.
 
Originally posted by LilyM: No, I don’t believe in a God who demands love and devotion from us by withholding good things from us. For starters it’s not exactly a great tactic - most people get discouraged and turn away from him.
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I don’t know about that. St. Monica prayed 30 years for the conversion of her son, who later became St. Augustine, one of the 33 doctors of the Church.

God know our limits. Most people won’t pray 30 years for something without giving up. In the case of St. Monica, I guess God knew that she would pray unceasingly.

Sometimes God does withdraw from us so that we seek him with greater vigilance, for instance, during the Dark Night of the Soul.

Yeah, I think God DOES dangle a carrot on a string from time-to-time but not of His own amusement. All God’s actions are motivated out of Love and out of knowing what’s best for each of us individually.
 
Thank you for your responses all. Well, at the risk of sounding like a complete self-serving homer, I have to say I really agree with the posters who agree with me, and really disagree with the ones who do not. How’s that for an unbiased opinion? 😃

Ok, what made me think about this was things like the following:

(a) Fortuna Agrelli suffering terribly for over 1 year, until Mary visited her and basically said “You pleased me so much I could not ignore you any longer.”

theholyrosary.org/54novena.html

(b) Saint Faustina wrote in her diary that each holy hour of prayer so pleases the heart of Jesus that each man, woman, and child on the face of the earth receives a new effect of God’s goodness and love because of the value of a single holy hour made in His Presence.

therealpresence.org/eucharst/tes/quotes10.html

So it seems clear that our worship, adoration and prayers are all extremely pleasing to God. And so naturally He would really like us to continue doing so. So if the way to make us continue doing so would be to prolong our hopes and desires (to perfect our spirit, or to make us that more grateful, etc.) then I think He does so.

In the end, what it reminds me of is something like Hulk Hogan listening for the cheers of the crowd, and soaking it all up. “I can’t hear you”. YAAAAAAY. “Still can’t hear you”. YAAAAAAAAAAAAY.
 
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