Trust in the Lord with your Prayers - He Hears!

It is hard to know how or what to pray at times, but God cares whether I know how or not. He just wants me to share my honest feelings with Him, and He will take it from there. Nothing is too small or too big to pray about; My words just need to come from my heart.  God works in small ways, and He works in big ways. God understands! God hears! God listens! 

     I look to John 14, where Jesus says, “Whatever you ask in my name, that will I do so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything, I will do it.” 

     At the same time there are other verses which tell me that if I do not receive, it may be because I ask with the wrong intent, or without forgiveness in our heart, or God has determined it is not in my best interest, or even that it is not in God’s timing. I just have to understand that there will be times when I may be disappointed with unanswered prayers. This only teaches me patience, courage, and a continuing trust in the Lord. I just need to keep praying!

     I also look at Jeremiah 1:6-9 “But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, I am a youth, because everywhere I send you, you shall go, And all that I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them…vs 9 “Then the Lord stretched out His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me, Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.”  

A~S~K

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7

Prayer is essential: 

Ask through bended-knee prayer.

Seek with desire for God’s face to shine upon your request.

Knock with assurance & confidence for the door to open.

 

 I simply must A~S~K in prayer to honor God, to communicate with God, to connect with God, to gain confidence in God, to grow my faith in God, and to participate in God’s desires.

Ask

 James 4:2 “You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.” 

     This verse says a lot to me so I think I will ramble a bit. 

     My words matter. My heart matters. Am I asking for the right things- things that would give me righteousness instead of selfish desires? Do I take the time to “ask”?

     God has poured out blessings to me because He is a loving God, yet what blessings have I not received because I have not asked, asked in the proper matter, and asked for what is pleasing in God’s eyes? 

     I go back to the Prayer of Jabez when he prayed, “Oh, that you would bless me… and God granted his request.” 

 

Why?

Ask and Ye shall receive….  Why couldn’t I…?  Because…

 

“Because of your little faith, Jesus told them.  For if you had faith even as small as a tiny mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move’ and it would go far away.  Nothing would be impossible.  But this kind of demon won’t leave unless you have prayed and gone without food.”  Matthew 17:20 LBV

“Go and gather all the Jews of Shushan and fast for me; do not eat or drink for three days, night or day; and I and my maids will do the same, and then, though it is strictly  forbidden, I will go in to see the king; and if I perish, I perish.” Esther 4:15

 

“We have fasted before you, they say.  Why aren’t you impressed:  Why don’t you see our sacrifices?  Why don’t you hear our prayers?  We have done much penance, and you don’t even notice it!...Because you are living in evil pleasure even while you are fasting , and you keep right on oppressing your workers.”  Isaiah 58:3 

 

“Look, what good is fasting when you keep on fighting and quarreling?  This kind of fasting will never get you anywhere with me”  … No, the kind of fast I want is that you stop oppressing those who work for you and treat them fairly and give them what they earn.”   Isaiah 58:4 

 

 

 

 

Ask and Receive!

     I believe we all wonder why God does not always answer our prayers.  Why? He tells us in scripture if we ask using His name He will answer us.  However, there is a "but" here.  Looking closely at John 14:13 He explains that whatever we ask should glorify the Father.  Is what we are asking for really being asked in order to glorify God or just to satisfy our own selfish desires?   

John 14:13(KJV) And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

John 14:13(NLT) You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father.