Thank you for your good question. Please consider Matthew 12: 38-40. “Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. But He answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”

Please also read Matthew 16:1-4. “The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that He would shew them a sign from heaven. He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times? A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.”

The Jews often wanted a sign to convince them of things. We read in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23, “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness.” These verses are clear that we should not seek after miraculous signs but after Christ Himself. He died, was buried, and rose again the third day. He is all that we need! As we read in Colossians 3:11, “Christ is everything” (JND).

The way to know that God hears our prayers is found in 1 John 5: 14-15. “And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.” We will find God’s will when we get to know Christ through His Word. As we grow closer to Him, we will love Him more and more and want to please Him as much as possible. Our prayers will be more like James 4:15, where we read “If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” If our prayers coincide with His will, then we can be certain that He not only hears us, but will also grant us our petitions. What a wonderful, loving God we serve! (227.7) (DJ)