Weekly Prayer Thought

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7.7-8

I often read this passage, taken from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, and think, "if only it were that easy." It seems that Jesus is saying that all your wishes will come true if you simply ask him. Doesn't that sound great? Doesn't it seem too good to be true? Well, it is. I believe that Jesus offers us the opportunity to pray for anything. I also believe that he hears and answers our prayers. I further believe that God is able to do or grant anything. So that leaves me with the question, "Why doesn't he?"

The biggest problem is that the verbs in our English translation Bibles do not communicate the full meaning of what Jesus says. When Jesus said to those on the mountain side, "Ask, seek, knock," he was really saying, "Keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking." It is too easy for us to give up. We say our prayers and wait for an answer. If the answer doesn't come right away we lose faith, or we lose interest. But Jesus says to keep on. You and I are to pray consistently and persistently for the answers that will come from the throne of God.

PRAYER: Good God, We are impatient. We give up when we don't get what we want right away. We lose interest and get distracted. Help me, help us all, to be more faithful in our prayers. Give us the faith to continue with you no matter what. Help us to trust you with our whole lives and all our prayers. Amen.