Do you ever feel like your prayers are wasted?

I’m not talking about the big, desperate ones; we tend to remember those. I mean the daily, routine prayers. The ones we say almost out of habit. The “same every time” kind. Sometimes, I wonder: Is this really doing anything? And what would happen if I just stopped?

Then there are the prayers we did pour our hearts into; the ones that didn’t get answered the way we hoped. Were those wasted? Did they vanish into thin air?

But it goes deeper than that.

And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.

Revelation 5:8

There’s this beautiful image in Scripture: incense rising before God, representing the prayers of His people. Our prayers. Even the ones that seem unanswered. Even the ones said through clenched teeth and tired faith. They rise.

Think of Jesus in the garden. He prayed, “Take this cup from me.” He asked. He pleaded. He submitted: “Not my will, but Yours be done.” Yet, God didn’t take the cup. There was no miraculous rescue from suffering. If it were you or me, we would probably consider that a failure and not an answer, but do you think those words were wasted? They weren’t. They were heard. They were holy.

And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.”

Matthew 26:39

Jesus didn’t treat God’s will like a throwaway line or a backup plan. We sometimes do. We tag it on when we’re unsure, or when doubt creeps in—“If it’s Your will…” as if that covers our bases when we lack faith and confidence to believe in God’s power. Jesus actually meant it. He trusted the Father’s plan, even when it led to the cross. And still, His prayer rose like incense.

So what does that mean for us?

It means our prayers, every one of them, really do matter. They are never wasted. We are never speaking to a brick wall. We’re talking to an everlasting Father. We’re not shouting into the void; we’re lifting up praise to the living God.

Consider the rest of that passage in Matthew. After Jesus returns from His short prayer, He asks the disciples why they could not manage to stay awake for the one hour He was gone. Was it that long of a walk, or was Jesus spending time in the presence of God, waiting and listening? In every real conversation with someone, there are silences, listening, and responses. Are we actually listening? Or are we just talking? Are we making requests and demands, or are we giving space for God to speak?

We have to remember to praise Him, not just for what He does, but for who He is. Praise Him for the privilege of conversation. Praise Him for being a God who hears.

Of course, all of this tends to feel harder than it is. How do we pray within the will of God? We let Him set the result, and He lets us worship and obey. Aligning with God’s will doesn’t mean we have to micromanage every prayer to fit some divine formula. Consider when you bake a cake. There are plenty of ingredients that can be used, but you can use different ratios and get different outcomes. Almost all of them will still look like a cake. God’s will isn’t about control. It’s about trust. It’s about using the ingredients He gives us to get to the result He has orchestrated. We may not get everything in the perfect ratio, but our will is working within the will of God whenever we are using what He has given us. There may be a perfect recipe, but we are not left without guidance. We just need to be willing to let Him lead.

Because our prayers are never wasted.

Even the routine or unanswered ones are still a sweet aroma to an everlasting God. He hears, responds, and delights in every word whispered in faith. Try to listen.