Podcast Summary: Christ With Coffee On Ice
Host: Ally Yost
Episode: "you’ll see this when God knows you’re ready" (March 14, 2025)

Episode Overview

In this deeply vulnerable and encouraging episode, host Ally Yost explores the experience of praying persistently for something yet feeling like God is silent or slow to answer. With openness, she walks listeners through her own struggles with unanswered prayers, the tension between persistence and surrender, and how these moments can bring us into closer intimacy with Jesus. Pulling from Scripture, personal anecdotes, and an impactful story by guest author Eliza Lada, Ally roots her reflections in biblical hope, challenging listeners to trust God’s goodness—even in the waiting.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Struggle of Persistent, Unanswered Prayer

• Ally empathizes with listeners who feel discouraged after praying for months or years without clear answers.
  • “Sometimes it actually takes more faith for me to come back to the same thing that hasn’t been answered... muster up the courage and really deny my flesh by spending, speaking up and asking the Lord again.” (04:41)
• She reflects on the fear of growing more vulnerable with repeated prayers.
  • The desire for self-protection (“don’t pray for it again; you’re just going to get your hopes up even more”).

Biblical Models of Desperate, Faithful Prayer

• Ally shares the story of Hannah (1 Samuel) as a biblical example of earnest, even desperate, prayer.
  • “I believe that the type of prayer I was pleading was the type of prayer that Hannah was praying in that moment where it’s like every fiber of her body was like, Lord, please, please do this.” (15:29)
• She also references Abraham’s surrender of Isaac (Genesis 22), emphasizing that surrender often means trusting God with our deepest desires and even relinquishing control.

The Balance Between Desperation and Surrender

• Desperation in prayer is powerful, but can slip into idolization or attempts to control.
  • “We can’t let desperation lead us to a place where now we feel like we are the only thing that can control that.” (22:30)
• True surrender means trusting that God cares more than we do—even when it’s hard to grasp.
  • “I need to trust that you care just as much, if not actually more about this situation than I do.” (24:10)

God’s Promises and the Mystery of His Timing

• Ally reads 1 Corinthians 2:9 (NLT):
  • “‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.’ That alone is a crazy statement.” (31:10)
• She reassures listeners that God’s “no” is never empty—He always prepares something better, though we may have to wait.
  • The “in between” season can be painful but is never a sign of abandonment.
  • “God could never forget about you. He was so intentional when he created you.” (37:07)

The Invitation to Unfiltered Honesty and Intimacy with Jesus

• Ally shares a story written by Eliza Lada about wrestling with God in prayer and worship.
  • “Even when I act like a sulky teen, in God’s incredible kindness, he keeps the invitation wide open. To keep asking, to keep coming.” (41:30)
• Prayer is more about intimacy than outcomes.
  • “Prayer isn’t about getting what we want. It’s about getting to know Jesus… Prayer always works because it always brings us into the life-changing presence of Jesus.” (45:47)

Perseverance in the Face of Silence

• Trust that God is working—often beyond what we can see or understand.
  • “Just because we don’t see it doesn’t mean that it’s not real. Doesn’t mean that it’s not happening.” (56:20)
• Analogy of God as the wind:
  • “You know that the wind exists. Can you see it? No, but you can see the effects…That’s how God is.” (57:10)

Personal Testimony of Comfort in Waiting

• Ally shares a personal moment when, after intense prayer, God offered comfort and subtle assurance.
  • “God showed me something in that thing, and I felt it was Him saying, I got this.” (01:00:11)

Encouragement to Keep Faith

• God listens, notices every word, and asks only for our trust in His timing.
  • “He’s prepared to provide, and he’s prepared to take care of you and answer your prayers... All he’s asking is for us to just trust him when maybe it doesn’t happen the way that we assumed or thought or hoped for.” (01:04:00)
• Ally closes with the hope of Jeremiah 29:10-14:
  • “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen.’” (01:07:05)

Memorable Quotes with Timestamps

“Sometimes it actually takes more faith for me to come back to the same thing that hasn’t been answered... muster up the courage and really deny my flesh by spending, speaking up and asking the Lord again.”
—Ally Yost (04:41)

“I believe that the type of prayer I was pleading was the type of prayer that Hannah was praying in that moment where it’s like every fiber of her body was like, Lord, please, please do this.”
—Ally Yost (15:29)

“We can’t let desperation lead us to a place where now we feel like we are the only thing that can control that.”
—Ally Yost (22:30)

“I need to trust that you care just as much, if not actually more about this situation than I do.”
—Ally Yost (24:10)

“‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.’ That alone is a crazy statement.”
—Ally Yost (31:10)

“God could never forget about you. He was so intentional when he created you.”
—Ally Yost (37:07)

“Prayer isn’t about getting what we want. It’s about getting to know Jesus… Prayer always works because it always brings us into the life-changing presence of Jesus.”
—(Eliza Lada quote, read by Ally, 45:47)

“God showed me something in that thing, and I felt it was Him saying, I got this.”
—Ally Yost (01:00:11)

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen.’”
—Jeremiah 29:11–12, read by Ally (01:07:05)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00–07:00 — Opening reflections on persistent prayer and vulnerability
• 15:00–25:00 — The story of Hannah; desperation in prayer; learning surrender
• 31:00–34:00 — 1 Corinthians 2:9 and God’s promises
• 38:00–45:00 — Reading and discussion of Eliza Lada’s story about unanswered prayer
• 56:00–59:00 — Analogy of God as the wind; unseen workings of God
• 01:00:00–01:04:00 — Personal testimony of receiving God’s comfort
• 01:07:00–01:09:00 — Closing encouragement with Jeremiah 29:10–14

Final Takeaways

• Surrendering our deepest desires is a profound act of faith, often seen throughout Scripture.
• God cares more than we do about the things that burden us; His “no” or “not yet” is always wrapped in a larger, better plan.
• Prayer always “works”—not as a vending machine for our wishes, but as a means of deeper intimacy with Jesus.
• Even in God’s silence, He is present, active, and loving.
• Keep praying, keep trusting, and know you are never forgotten.

Tone: Warm, raw, encouraging, gently challenging—Ally’s signature blend of faith and realness.

Recommended Action: Walk in faith this week, pray persistently, and surrender your outcomes to God’s care. Remember: “God has never given up on us, so we are not going to give up on Him.” (01:08:40)