Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Keep On Asking {GraceNotes}

Because it keeps resurfacing in my head/heart, I am sharing more thoughts about one of the Bible passages that I memorized as a little girl. Today, I am sharing thoughts on this passage from my son, Mark Ford, pastor of First Baptist Church, Longview, WA.

Begin quoted material

Some biblical principles take time to understand. I have been wrestling with Matthew 7:7-11 for some time. Jesus said "Keep on asking, seeking, knocking... and it will be given to you." He said, "God won't give you a stone if you ask for bread or a snake if you ask for a fish." This is because He is a good Father, as is clear in the text.

But what if I ask for the wrong thing? Shouldn't I just pray for His Will and be done with it? No. This is not what Jesus taught. He taught us to pray SPECIFIC prayers and to KEEP ON ASKING for what we want or need. So again, what if I ask for the wrong thing? This is where the insight comes in. If I ask for a stone or a snake when I need bread or fish, what will God do? He is a good Father. I can trust Him to answer my prayers in a way that is for my good. This was Jesus' whole point, in fact.

This means something very real. This means I can ask in faith, without fear. This means I can ask for something good without worrying that it might be the wrong thing. See, if what I ask for is not good, my good Father will not give it to me. Why? Because He is a good Father. But beyond that, Jesus was very clear about how we can pray in faith. In fact, He was clear to this extent: IF IT IS GOOD AND I ASK FOR IT, I WILL RECEIVE IT.

I challenge anyone to read the passage mentioned above (or several other places where Jesus tells us to pray specifically and with faith) and prove otherwise. Jesus was clear. Ask in faith, and IF IT IS GOOD, you will receive it. If you do not receive it, though you kept on asking in faith, then you can know that the Father knew it was not the best thing for you. If it is good, and you keep on asking, He will give it to you. Why? Because the Father loves to give good gifts to His children. He loves it!

I've spent months struggling with this, but now I know... I can ask without worrying He will give me what I ask for even if it's actually going to be bad for me. I can also ask knowing that if it is good (and He knows), I will receive it.

Note: This is not health and wealth doctrine, because the fact is that sometimes what God knows is for our good is going to actually be painful. But the point is we can ask for what we think is going to be good without any fear, and God wants us to ask. This is what Jesus clearly taught.

Read Matthew 7:7-11. Struggle with it for months as I have. See if you do not arrive at the same conclusion. ASK. SEEK. KNOCK!!!

End of quoted material

A couple of Faith Art pieces I have shared within the last year (told you, this passage has been on my mind a lot):

IMG_9174

My blog post where I first shared this Bible Art

IMG_9275

My blog post where I first shared this Faith Art

#GraceNotesFromTheSongsInMyHeart
#BibleArtJournaling #FaithArt #CommentaryFromMySonPastor #GoodGoodFather #AskSeekKnock

No comments: