Belonging (S2) : WK 4 - FRI
(Matthew 21:22) “You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.”
Let’s take a moment and parse this statement by Jesus.
First, Jesus says…
“You can pray for anything…”
The Psalms is a manual on prayer and if you take the time to read through the whole thing you can see that there is truly nothing you can’t pray for. There are prayers for forgiveness, renovation, restoration, and all sorts of miracles. There are prayers of celebration, joy, and worship. There are also prayers for destruction, complaining, and the annihilation of enemies. Yeah, check it out. You might be surprised by some of them. So whatever you are going through, good or bad, all prayers are welcome.
Second, Jesus says…
“...and if you have faith…”
Again, that faith subject. So there has to be a level of belief and trust when it comes to approaching God with our requests. And it might not be that we believe that we are going to get everything we ask for. My experience has been that we don’t get everything we ask for. But our faith helps us to know that we have a God who listens to our requests. All of them. That is why we keep coming back to him.
And third, Jesus says…
“...you will receive it.”
But we just established that we don’t get everything that we ask for. This is true. But if you think about it, we do get what we ask for. Because the closer we get to God, the more we ask for the things that truly matter. The more we abide with him, the more our hearts align with him and the more we want the things of the kingdom.
So keep abiding. Keep praying. Keep asking. And watch God deliver the things that will truly make a difference in the world.
Let’s take a moment and parse this statement by Jesus.
First, Jesus says…
“You can pray for anything…”
The Psalms is a manual on prayer and if you take the time to read through the whole thing you can see that there is truly nothing you can’t pray for. There are prayers for forgiveness, renovation, restoration, and all sorts of miracles. There are prayers of celebration, joy, and worship. There are also prayers for destruction, complaining, and the annihilation of enemies. Yeah, check it out. You might be surprised by some of them. So whatever you are going through, good or bad, all prayers are welcome.
Second, Jesus says…
“...and if you have faith…”
Again, that faith subject. So there has to be a level of belief and trust when it comes to approaching God with our requests. And it might not be that we believe that we are going to get everything we ask for. My experience has been that we don’t get everything we ask for. But our faith helps us to know that we have a God who listens to our requests. All of them. That is why we keep coming back to him.
And third, Jesus says…
“...you will receive it.”
But we just established that we don’t get everything that we ask for. This is true. But if you think about it, we do get what we ask for. Because the closer we get to God, the more we ask for the things that truly matter. The more we abide with him, the more our hearts align with him and the more we want the things of the kingdom.
So keep abiding. Keep praying. Keep asking. And watch God deliver the things that will truly make a difference in the world.
- What is something that you have prayed for that you have not received yet? Why do you think that is?
- How aligned do you feel with the heart of God? What can help you be more aligned with Him?
- What was the last prayer God answered for you? Take a moment and thank Him.
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