Can You Imagine?

How many books or movies when you were a kid opened up your imagination?  I use to feel like I was right there in the book.  I somehow became one or the characters or was in whatever place they were describing.  Sometimes I might imagine I had some kind of special power or ability.  Sometimes I would imagine that a series a doors were in front of me and each one could take me to some place different.  Sometimes I would imagine I could wish for whatever I wanted and it would appear.   Can you imagine how great as adults  it would be if we could do that now? As Christians, the good news is, that we do have the ability to ask for things from our Heavenly Father who loves us.  He never yells at us when we ask for something outside of His Will, instead he lovingly gives us what is best for us.  How could you not want what is best for you?  To actual receive the best answer to our question, is far better most of the time than what we could have ever asked for. Read Matthew 7:7 -8.

 ⁷ “Keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

As we learned in previous devotions the key is persistence.  Keep asking, seeking and knocking.  We also learned that it is 100% guaranteed that we will get an answer.  We could write the President of the U.S. and ask him a question and there is no guarantee we would even get an answer.  So that is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father will guarantee to answer us.  He will open the door when we knock.  He won’t hide out in the dark behind closed drapes and wait for us to give up and leave.  He will come to the door and open it.  He will help us find what we are looking for.  He will give to those who ask.  I find these verses very encouraging.  I can depend on God.  I know He will answer my prayers in the best possible way.  These verses encourage me to be persistent and encourage me to wait for the best answer from God.  I will remember that my requests might not be the best for me and that they are merely suggestions to God.  I will let His genius figure out what is best for me. 

It Couldn’t Hurt to Ask

I grew up with the old idiom “It couldn’t hurt to ask” or “It never hurts to ask”.  You see an object at the store that you would really like to get, but it looks too pricey so you walk away.  Perhaps that was a missed opportunity to apply the old idiom.  I know it has worked in my life a few times.  I asked for something for a reasonable price and it was given to me.  In this economy you might find that it will work more often than you think.  How many times as a kid were you not afraid to ask you parents or grandparents over and over again for that ice cream cone as the ice cream truck passed?  How many times did it work?  I know if I didn’t ask I didn’t chance at all at getting the ice cream.  That same wisdom was passed on to us by God.  Read Matthew 7: 7-8.

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; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

 We need to ask God questions.  We need to ask God for what we need.  We need ask even if we aren’t sure it is something we should even ask for.  Like a child asking for an ice cream on a hot summer day.  An ice cream really might not be the best thing for the child.  Maybe it’s right before dinner.  Maybe a glass of water would really be healthy for the child and quench their thirst and cool them down.  God also tells us that we need to seek or search and we need to knock at the door.  All of these are active steps on our part.  We need to take time to communicate with God.  Just like I use to look for those Chocolate Chip cookies my mom hid from us kids, I need to look for what God has for me.  I need to seek or search out what He has.  I use to knock on my Mom and Dad’s bedroom door and ask them for things.  We need to knock on God’s door and ask.  If Jesus himself told us to ask, seek and knock, don’t you think it would be the wise thing to do?  After all it couldn’t hurt to ask, what is the worst He is going to do to us for asking?  Out of love He is going to give us the best answer, even if that means “No” or “Wait”.