Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
Matthew 7:7
You can ask for anything in my name,
and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father.
John 14:13
Matthew Henry, the great British
theologian explained that the words in these passages of scripture above. It is assumed that we ask for good
gifts, and that we ask as Christ has taught us, in His name and
according to His spirit. Otherwise we may ask and not receive, because
what we ask for is unsuitable, not quite right, or out of place, or
out of order. Every one who asks does receive, that is, everyone who
asks correctly, who prays in faith and in submission to the will of
God. A parent will seek the welfare of the child, and give what he
thinks will be most for its good. Whatever we ask in Christ's name,
that would be for our good, God will give to us. To ask in Christ's
name, is to make an emotional appeal for his goodness on our behalf.
I recently spoke to someone who has
recently experienced a tragedy. I was telling him how I've been
praying for their family, and the response was, "yeah well it's
not doing much good." I ached to hear that and thought of how
we are to be Ambassadors for Christ. We need to share the fact that
we have troubles too, and they're not all going to go away when we
pray. We must pray for God's will, not expect Him to answer the way
we want them answered, when we want.
How do we respond when God doesn't
answer our prayers? Does our faith waver if He doesn't give us what
we've asked for in the way and time that we expected? Charles Stanley
says that we need to understand what God is doing in our lives.
Sometimes God doesn't immediately give the relief we are asking for
because He's using that particular trial to produce something good in
us. God wants us to come to Him with our requests, trusting that He
hears us. If he doesn't answer them immediately, it's not because He
doesn't care. His purposes are always accomplished according to His
timing, not ours. He may answer in a different way or later than we
expect. That's why we must wait and trust Him even when we see no
evidence of an answer. Stanley says that “whenever God delays in
responding to our petitions, He's teaching us to consistently trust
and believe Him, not because we see the answer, but because He's
promised to hear and answer our prayers. When doubts arise because
God delays, it's due to our lack of trust in Him, not a lack of care
or ability on the Lord's part.”
Human reasoning and faith are not
always compatible. We may have all kinds of good reasons for asking
for something, but God sees more of the situation than we do. God is
Omnipotent, He knows so much more than we can even fathom. Charles
Stanley explained it perfectly when he said, “If God delays in
answering a prayer, He has divine reason that is good, legitimate,
and helpful. His primary purpose is not to give us everything we
desire but to shape us into the image of His Son, and He knows the
perfect way to accomplish this.”
God is not a Genie who grants wishes, but we must still pray constantly while remembering to ask for God's will and time, and have faith. God loved us so much that He gave His only son for our sins.
Prayer changes things.
