Matthew 7:7–11 (NIV)

7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

James 4:2 (NIV)

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.

“Use your words…”

Anyone with kids knows this phrase. We have said it a thousand times. Your toddler comes up to you, tugs on your shirt, bounces up and down, whines and grunts, and sometimes points. They want the candy, or the cookies, or the water, or the bread, or the fish… and you usually know exactly what they want, too. You want to give it to them, but you don’t yet; you make them use their words. Then. maybe “please” and “thank you.”

In a similar way, God is also a good Father who delights in giving good gifts to His children. He also knows what we need before we say a word. So, why don’t we have all that we need? Why doesn’t God just supply what we need? Because we didn’t use our words.

When we ask, we are not telling God what to do, but we are learning to partner with Him to accomplish His Will on earth as it is in heaven. When we ask and He responds, we learn to trust Him more and more. God has given us the dignity of causation through the power of prayer. The plan has always been for humans to reign and rule over creation, and that can only happen when we learn the power of using our words: the power of prayer. He is training us for reigning by making us use our words. (Just be sure to also say “please” and “thank you.”)

Your Turn:

ASK:

What is one thing that you truly desire? Something deep in your heart that you are almost hesitant to ask God for. Write it out on a piece of paper; make it very clear and concise. Then simply bring it to your Heavenly Father and ask Him for it.

SEEK:

God usually answers our prayers through His creation and natural means. What can you do to position yourself to receive what you asked Him for? For example, if you pray to win the lottery, you need to buy a ticket. If you pray for a job, you need to apply and go to interviews. If you pray for a spouse, you need to go on a date. This isn’t you trying to make the prayer come to pass in your own strength, it is you partnering with God to bring it to pass.

KNOCK:

Be like the persistent widow. Don’t give up on asking and trusting God to bring it about in His timing. If you keep knocking, you will be ready when He opens the door to walk into your blessing.