Pastor Randy Frazee shared this with his congregation:

My mother was dying. I went to God and made a special request. By her bedside I prayed 50 times. I counted. Fifty times I asked God to grant my request. I did this because I had studied the teaching of Jesus on prayer; he admires someone who knocks at the door continuously. This gave me the notion that if I knocked continuously, eventually God would arise from his seat and fix my problem.

I asked God specifically to give my mother one of two things. The first of my requests was my desired request. The second was a concession. The first request was that he would give my mother 18 more years. I prayed 50 times, "God, give her 18 more years." Or I told him, "Take her today."

I asked for 18 more years for a particular reason. Number one, my mother was 62, and 18 more years would make her 80. I thought that was a good round number. But more specifically, my oldest brother just had a baby girl. I thought it would be great if my mother could see her graduate from high school.

This request did not just come out of the air as it might sound. I received the request from a creative prayer that was done by a man named Hezekiah in 2 Kings 20. In 2 Kings 20:1-6, Hezekiah lies on his deathbed and prays to the Lord, "Remember, O Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes." And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him. "Go back and tell Hezekiah the leader of my people, this is what the Lord the God of your father David says, 'I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord, and I will add 15 years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.'"

God heard his prayer, saw his tears, and gave him 15 more years. Now, I asked for 18. But he didn't give me 18 more years, not even 18 months, not even 18 days. Within 18 hours my mother passed away.

I had to ask myself the question: What's that all about? Does God not love me? Have I not served him like Hezekiah did? Did he not see my tears when I turned my face to the wall and wept bitterly? Why did God come through for Hezekiah and not for Randy Frazee?