I sat last night over pizza and salad with a friend discussing whether God hears us. But, most importantly does He answer.
1 John 5:14 says…
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, he hears us. (NIV)
“According to His will.” What does this mean? I get that it says it, but what does this mean to my life and specifically what God has for me? What should I pray?
This line reminds me of another portion of scripture found in Matthew 6.
This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. ’”
~Matthew 6:9-13 NIV
“Your will be done.” What a powerful place to pray. What if instead of our wishes and our desires, we prayed for God’s will to be done? What would that look like for you? I know for me in comes from place of distrust. I don’t mean to. But, it’s hard. My Christ-following heart wants to know that God has my best interest at heart, that he knows what’s best for me.
But, my mind has doubts. How could He know? And, my mind screams, “But I want this, Daddy!”
My daughter wants a smartphone. She is about to turn 11 and has been talking about getting a phone since she was five years old. My husband and I have consistently answered “No” since then with comments such as “You’re too young.”, “You don’t need one.”, and “Who would you call?”
She doesn’t care how much we dissuade her. In her heart, she is worthy of a smartphone.
So what does this mean with our relationship to God? Is this the “Keep asking, seeking and knocking” scripture in Matthew 7? Is this the widow who kept bugging the judge until he finally said “YES!” just to keep her out of his hair? I don’t know either. But, it sure made me think!
Jesus says to pray for God’s will. Then he says to keep asking seeking and knocking and bugging and annoying and persisting and picking and acting like a duck on a June bug.
I am not saying there is an inconsistency here! That is quite the opposite. He knows what we want before we ask. (Matthew 6). But, I feel in all this God wants to open up a conversation. A conversation of how we really feel. A conversation of hopes and dreams; of wants and desires.
He wants us to TALK WITH HIM! And, He wants to talk with US!
God wants us to make Him an important friend. Do you tell your bestie what you want in life, or do you keep it bottled up tightly inside with the cork on and the wrapping still around the bottle? Okay. Maybe some people do, but for the most part, we are quick to share what we want in life–or what we don’t want–to our closest confidants.
What are your desires? What has God planted in your heart? Are they coming true? Or, have you not popped the cork?
Today, I challenge you to talk to God and pop the cork on your dreams and desires. Or, chat with Him about a situation that you see happening that you’d like a different outcome in. We all have them. You are not alone.
What’s your cork? What’s your bottle? It’s time to get that corkscrew out!
My other, maybe even bigger question for the day is, “What if God’s will is ‘No.’?” But, I feel that’s for another post.
I’m by no means an expert. No one is an expert on God’s word except, frankly, God! But like He says, He wants to be keep asking, seeking and knocking. And, I plan to do just that!
Today, I’m going to watch for God’s blessings both big and small. Is it hard for you to see when God is blessing you? Please share in the comments. I’d love to know, too!
May God bless you richly today and may you discover something new about you and Him.
Be blessed!
~DMM
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