Whatever I Ask God?

-

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24


Yesterday, I pondered that verse. 

 

Really God? Whatever I ask?


I’ve always struggled with this scripture because clearly I have not received “whatever” I’ve asked for in prayer. God is not a liar, so what did He mean by this? Well, when looking at the context of the scriptures around that verse, I came to this. . . 


When our whole hearts are right with God (which means searching to find if there are any issues we are not dealing with), and we are living a life focused on glorifying Him, then what we desire will be in line with His will, and we will indeed receive what we ask for. 


I can’t help but think about how many times many of us have asked God to save a loved one’s life, but they still died, or stayed sick,  lost a job, or didn’t come back home. . . The list goes on and on. I’ll tell you how I deal with those things, and you let me know if it makes sense to you. As I’ve learned more about who God is, my prayers have changed. I don’t always ask God to fix a difficult situation. I tend to pray for the outcome that has the most potential to bring people closer to Him. Sometimes that means people or things are lost. 


5 years ago, I asked God to save my son’s life, and He did. However, I also asked Him to heal Him completely, but He didn’t. I can look at the situation now, and see that Isaiah’s current struggles bring more glory to God than complete healing would have. What a testimony that kid has as he continues to find joy and inspire hope, regardless of his circumstances. 


Though things didn’t turn out exactly the way I had hoped, I choose to see how God is using it, not just for His glory, but also for my good. And I’m not special! We all have access to that same kind of life. We can all see through the lens of God’s goodness. 


Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Psalm 34:8

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Complexity of Prayer

-
Image
Have you ever considered the complexity of prayer? Have you ever had something you needed to pray about, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to talk to God about whatever the issue was? I have experienced that many times. I will call it “Prayer paralysis.” Prayer paralysis happens when you are afraid of any answer God might give you. If He says no, then you might feel bad, or sad, or even angry. If He says yes, then your fear factor increases because you just don’t think you can handle what a “Yes” entails (which essentially means that you don’t trust Him). So instead of revealing your lack of trust (Like seriously, you don’t think He knows? ), you just don’t pray. It’s kind of like when you were a little kid, and you would sit still and close your eyes, thinking that it would make you invisible. God already knows our fears of failure, self-pride, and even our trust issues, so we might as well just go ahead and lay it all at His feet. There’s another kind of prayer paralysis that I ha
Read more

Should Someone Call an Exorcist?

-
Image
Last Friday I went bowling with some of my family. I am aware of my low skill level, so I remained humble throughout the first game, and surprisingly finished in 1st place!  The second game began and I just knew I would dominate even more. I may not have been quite as humble. I was last on the list to go. I stood up and approached my ball with confidence. I picked it up, set my eye on the center arrow painted on the lane, then took a few quick steps forward just as I had before.  As I took my last step, I swung my arm backward, then forward, and fell flat on my face. Actually, flat is not entirely accurate. I’m pretty sure every one of my limbs flew in a different direction, and the position of my head may have had folks wondering if they should call an exorcist. I also seemed to be temporarily blinded from the fall but could hear my ball bouncing its way down the lane. Let’s pause for a moment of prayer. The problem was that I had stepped over the foul line into the lane— 1. Not reali
Read more

Go Deeper

-
Image
  Anyone struggling with anxiety? I have struggled with it quite a bit. Then, I realize that forgetting to bring all of my anxiety-inducing problems to God, is a big part of the problem. Yesterday I talked about living in endurance mode. Part of that is taking all of the difficult things, and trying to wait them out.  If I really think about it, I may have subconsciously believed that struggling is just part of the journey and that I need to suck it up, because Jesus went through way more than I ever will.    But, “ Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)  He never intended for us to hold onto them. Sometimes we don’t bother saying anything to God because, well, He knows what’s happening. He can change it if He wants to. So we sit paralyzed—enduring! Is that familiar to anyone? Though He could whisk our struggles away at any time, part of the journey, part of our relationship with the Creator is rooted in commu
Read more