prayer...

And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for. 1 John 5:14-15


I love this scripture! And not because is a promise to give us everything, but because it is a promise to give us everything we need that is asked for in His will and His time.  So many scriptures like this are pulled out of context and used to assert our Santa Claus or Grandpa-like visions of God. We see an old, long haired, bearded man, usually sporting a shiny white tunic or robe, glowing with a golden serving platter behind his head. And we dare to call this image God. We step in the queue, and prepare our wish list with expectation and enthusiasm, giddy like a child waiting in the line at Macy's on December 23rd. We approach God and ask - as if He owes us something or at worse, as if we deserve it.


I worked with a guy named Tommy years ago in one of many restaurant jobs I had. One day he asked me about my faith and what I thought about prayer.  After my feeble attempt at explaining what I thought prayer was, he told me what he believed it to be...
     "Prayers are like magic wishes. You only get so many of them during your life.  When they are all gone, that's it. No more!"


That made me sad, and no matter how much I tried to let him know that prayers were not limited and that prayer was a wonderful conversation with God, he could not shake the misguided understanding that God was a magic genie and that he limited the amount of requests.  He had it deeply ingrained that: God didn't care, that prayer was one way - just about asking for things, and that there was no method to receiving - Just luck.


Scriptures teach us that God loves us and wants the best for us. That doesn't always mean that He says yes to our requests, but it does mean that He will say yes sometimes (and no  other times).  But the one thing we really miss in all of these discussions is this: Are we asking in "God's will"?  Are we asking for things that we want or are we asking for the things that God wants for us?  And remember... God will only give us good things!


There is such hope in praying in Jesus' name and for his will.  It frees us from having to worry about our own desires and needs. It allows us to focus on Christ and obeying His commands. It allows us to look to serving others and loving people with the love of our eternal, heavenly Father.  Praying in The name of Christ brings wonderful results. And yes... sometimes the answer is "no".  Sometimes the answer is wait.  Yet other times the answer is a resounding, "yes"; and the abundance of God's grace and provision flows out like a rushing river - white-capped and uncontrollable!  It's wonderful! It's scary! and it is such a blessing!


"Until now, you have asked for nothing in my name. Ask and receive and your joy may be complete"  John 16:24