You can ask God for everything!

Do you ever edit your prayers?  Do you ever feel guilty because you are asking for too much, or because you are asking for the same thing repeatedly? 

I personally struggle with these things, some days they are easier to manage and then other days, it’s a full out war in my mind.   I know that I have been blessed and am blessed.  I have so much more than most people and yet, I still want more.

The things I want more of have changed; they have become more emotional and spiritual than physical and material.  My desires have evolved and have grown with me in age and in relationship to where I am with God.

But yet, I still desire to have more.

Is this the gluttony in me or the desire to be greedy and take more than my share, or is this the Holy Spirit in me leading me into the life that I have always dreamed about.  These are some of my questions.

When I am praying that my heart desires are heard and delivered, am I being selfish instead of praying for the needs of others?  Every day there are thousands of questions like this that we can ask and usually not get an answer too.

We can follow our hearts and not our minds, and speak from the abundance of our hearts, and I believe that is the way that God would want us to go, but still the flesh speaks.

When I pray for God to deliver my family to me soon, and bring me through the times of hardship and softly deliver me into healing.  I am speaking from my desires, but mostly from my desire to be covered and protected, but still changed and delivered.  I don’t think I can have both things without going through the process to have them.

I found some solace in my reading tonight when I came across Matthew 7:7-12.  I am sure that we are familiar with these verses, as we have heard them surely in church, seen them on Facebook as our daily inspiration, or even on instagram attached by some adorning picture that sets the scene for the verse.

But have we really taken the time to think about these verses?  Have we asked that these verses be revealed to us, for the time we are currently in?

Matthew 7:7 Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking (reverently) and (the door) will be opened to you.  (8) For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, (the door) will be opened. (11) If you then, evil as you are, know how to give good and advantageous gifts to your children, how much more will your Father Who is in heaven (perfect as He is) give good and advantageous things to those who keep on asking Him! (12) So the, whatever you desire that others would do to and for you, even so do also to and for them, for this is (sums up) the Law and the Prophets.

How interesting is it that God would lead me to this scripture tonight when I struggle with my feelings of wanting too much, all day.  Of thinking the prayers that I had asked for today were mainly about me and my needs.  I did include my loved ones and people that I have come across, but still mainly my needs were at the core of these prayers.

So how am I to take verse 7…? Well I will take it this way, and maybe you will like the idea, or maybe you will disagree, either way is fine, but this is how my heart reacted to the verses I just shared. 

It’s ok. 

It’s ok to want things, to ask for things, to request for things.  It’s ok to ask to be blessed and to have God’s favor in your life.  It’s ok to ask for promotion from God… It’s ok!    It’s ok that I ask for the same thing for my loved ones, it’s ok. 

It’s alright if I don’t speak eloquently in my prayers and if they only consist of a few words.  As a matter of fact, God prefers for us to speak words of truth, our truth and for us to ask for help from Him.  He wants you to come to Him often through the day, every day, and ask for His assistance and guidance.  He doesn’t want the pretty, shiny, text book prayer, He wants the prayer from you heart.

He tells us in these verses to keep asking, for if you keep asking you will receive.  To keep knocking, because the door will be opened to you.  And so importantly, I believe, to keep seeking Him.  Keep seeking His face and not His hand so that you will find Him and His Character.  For the glory and the gift, the answers to your hearts desires, and the prayers you so humbly give to Him are all found in seeking His face.

Verse 11, I think tells us, how we can never be ashamed of our prayers or our petitions to God.  How can we ever expect for God to not give us His best, when He is God.  He is perfect and He loves us perfectly.  He doesn’t know how to do anything else but perfection.  He doesn’t do sub-par or mediocre, He gives 100% or nothing.

Our problem, again, just my observation, is we expect God to answer the way we would answer, and that’s not His way.   As we know God’s world is opposite of the world’s view, and we are unfortunately more exposed to the worlds view than we are to God’s.   So when we come across a verse like verse 12 we are taken aback.  We are left to question, really, this is how I am supposed to receive… by giving.

Yes… the answer is yes.

I think the point here is when you are focused on yourself, you do become fleshly and worldly.  You become self –indulgent and me focused and that’s not the nature of God.  We are to become more like Him and less like us.  For He must increase, and I must decrease.

When you take the focus off of your desires and wants and help someone else achieve their desires and wants, we no longer are focused on ourselves.  We are now taking part in someone else’s life and in their joy.  When you give away what you have emotionally, physically or monetarily you are giving from the heart that God has given to you.  You are giving to help someone else.  You are lifting up someone else instead of focusing on your lack.  This gives God the chance to bless you. 

You might not be blessed in the way, again, that you expect, but you will be blessed in the way that God knows you need.  It’s beautiful to know that when your in need, your answer should be how I can give.  What can I give away to actually fulfill the need in myself.

I am not saying this in a selfish way either, I am saying when you give you receive more than anything you could have ever imagined.  It’s double fold actually.  When you give you are helping someone else but also helping yourself.

We are told in the Bible to keep asking, to keep knocking and to keep seeking.  We are given these instructions on how to live our lives, and I believe we are given them so that behind the scenes God can do His work.  He can begin to actually transform us from the old man into the new man.  Into His image.