Are you asking God for what you want?
Most believers know that we must ask God in prayer for the things that we desire. But, speaking personally, I often neglect to do it.
One of the saddest passages in the Bible is Ezekiel 22:30 where God says he was looking for someone to intercede for righteousness in the land but he found no one. There was no one to "stand in the gap" on behalf of the people to ward off coming destruction.
There are big things such as national issues in which to seek God's help. And for many people in the world, there are serious personal problems such as food and shelter to pray about.
But I wonder if we Christians think that some things are too trivial to bring to God. Or, we decide that we can manage better than God to solve our concerns. Or, we ask once and give up if we don't get the instant answer we wish.
Colin Dye, author of Prayer Explosion: Power for Christian Living, believes that a key reason for this kind of thinking is that we often have an "independent spirit" - a feeling that we need to fend for ourselves.
"In spiritual matters," he writes, "it is actually independence which is the unspiritual thing and dependence on God that is power and strength."
Dye makes it clear that God wants us to ask. Jesus repeatedly tells us to ask (John 4:2, John 16:24, John 14:13-14, Matthew 7:7-11).
"Let it never be said that we missed out on his blessings just because we didn't ask," says Dye.
He says that we should not approach God timidly.
The writer of Hebrews declares in Hebrews 4:16: "So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."
"Our God loves us much more than we appreciate," Dye writes. "Trust him. Trust in his love."
In Isaiah 62, the prophet writes that God yearns for his people. Isaiah calls on the Israelites to "take no rest, all you who pray to the Lord".
Dye notes that the apostle John writes in 1 John 5:14-15 that "if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us". And if we know he hears us "we know that we have what we asked of him".
So, as pray-ers, we are to align ourselves with God's will. We know his will as we become familiar with God as a person - through prayer, meditating on scripture, and the light of the Holy Spirit.
Then, we can pray with true confidence and faith.
Many Christians have followed this route in praying for major issues in their lives. It is the road George Muller took in praying for the many orphans he was caring for in Britain in the 1800s. Without making public appeals for funds, he always received enough money to pay for food and shelter for the orphans - sometimes on the very day when his orphanages were running out of food.
Dye's words push me out of my lethargy in prayer.
As the apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:6: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done."
Words to live by.
Most believers know that we must ask God in prayer for the things that we desire. But, speaking personally, I often neglect to do it.
One of the saddest passages in the Bible is Ezekiel 22:30 where God says he was looking for someone to intercede for righteousness in the land but he found no one. There was no one to "stand in the gap" on behalf of the people to ward off coming destruction.
There are big things such as national issues in which to seek God's help. And for many people in the world, there are serious personal problems such as food and shelter to pray about.
But I wonder if we Christians think that some things are too trivial to bring to God. Or, we decide that we can manage better than God to solve our concerns. Or, we ask once and give up if we don't get the instant answer we wish.
Colin Dye, author of Prayer Explosion: Power for Christian Living, believes that a key reason for this kind of thinking is that we often have an "independent spirit" - a feeling that we need to fend for ourselves.
"In spiritual matters," he writes, "it is actually independence which is the unspiritual thing and dependence on God that is power and strength."
Dye makes it clear that God wants us to ask. Jesus repeatedly tells us to ask (John 4:2, John 16:24, John 14:13-14, Matthew 7:7-11).
"Let it never be said that we missed out on his blessings just because we didn't ask," says Dye.
He says that we should not approach God timidly.
The writer of Hebrews declares in Hebrews 4:16: "So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."
"Our God loves us much more than we appreciate," Dye writes. "Trust him. Trust in his love."
In Isaiah 62, the prophet writes that God yearns for his people. Isaiah calls on the Israelites to "take no rest, all you who pray to the Lord".
Dye notes that the apostle John writes in 1 John 5:14-15 that "if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us". And if we know he hears us "we know that we have what we asked of him".
So, as pray-ers, we are to align ourselves with God's will. We know his will as we become familiar with God as a person - through prayer, meditating on scripture, and the light of the Holy Spirit.
Then, we can pray with true confidence and faith.
Many Christians have followed this route in praying for major issues in their lives. It is the road George Muller took in praying for the many orphans he was caring for in Britain in the 1800s. Without making public appeals for funds, he always received enough money to pay for food and shelter for the orphans - sometimes on the very day when his orphanages were running out of food.
Dye's words push me out of my lethargy in prayer.
As the apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:6: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done."
Words to live by.
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