Have you ever prayed earnestly for something that you felt sure would be “right and good,” only to have your prayer go unanswered? I heard once of a woman who was so convinced her son should come home from the war safely that she lost her faith when her fervent, daily prayer was denied. How do you reconcile Jesus’s teaching with the reality that we’ve all asked for something that we didn’t receive? Our pastor dealt with the two passages from Matthew 7 and Luke 9 on this topic, and although he humbly stated that he wasn’t sure he was right, it seemed right to him . . . and it also resonates in my heart, so I want to pass it along.
Jim said he was praying and asking God what the passage meant: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asks receives and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8). In his heart, he heard, “Have you ever knocked, and I haven’t opened a door?”
He thought about it a long time and realized the answer was “No.” My mental Rolodex (archaic but still apt) started flipping through entries, and I realized that was also true of me. Here’s my story: There have been many things I’ve ardently prayed for over the years (and still do), but I have not received them. Most significantly, that the whole world would believe in Jesus and be saved by faith. Wouldn’t you love that??? I can’t think of anything I’d love more! On a less global scale, I just wish all my family and the people I love so dearly would become children of God by faith and enter in to the amazing blessings of peace, joy, and eternal life that only Jesus can give. I always hope the Lord is just telling me to “Hang on, wait, and keep praying,” but I can definitely attest to the fact that not all my dearly loved relatives are born again at this point.
And, what about seeking and finding? That prayer seems to get answered with more regularity. It seems like almost any time I ask my heavenly Father for wisdom on what to do, He will give me a key. It might be a thought, or a verse that pops into my mind, or something shared by a friend . . . or possibly through the everyday circumstances as I go about my day after praying, but it definitely seems like He provides wisdom when asked, and almost always He will give me a sense of peace that I interpret as His seal of approval on what I’m considering. When it comes to finding something physical that’s lost, again, I can think of many times when He has reminded me where I put something or will put into my brain to look somewhere and it shows up. But, not always. Sometimes things stay lost. Sometimes it’s time to make a decision and I’m still unsure, or I’m under the authority of someone who makes a decision with which I disagree. Not everything works out “right” and “good” as far as I can tell. I mean, maybe I can’t tell, but sometimes things go very wrong, and I feel a little like the apostles must have felt when Jesus was crucified. “How can that possibly be right?”
But, when I stop wrestling with my own emotions and surrender to God, really, truly just wanting whatever God wants . . . when I wait in the dark for His still, small voice, He answers. I knock, and He opens the door, even if it’s just a crack of light that comes out and shines like a door of hope opening in the Valley of Achor. He is there. That’s really all I need. He cares. He’s aware. He hears. He opens His arms. I picture myself curling up on His lap, just waiting like David did, trying to quiet myself in His presence, trusting him like a nursing infant trusts his mother. I may not get what I want; I may not find what I was seeking, but He opens the door and let’s me in. I see his presence and glory, and it’s enough. I trust Him, and it’s enough. As Job said so long ago, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear: but now my eye sees You. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:5-6). Who am I to be trying to explain to God why my way is the right way? “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:5). Yes; by faith, I believe He will!
So, I continue to ask daily, fervently, for all I want and think is good and right for my family and the world, but I open my hands and end with, “nevertheless not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39).
“Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child” (Psalm 131:2).
Summer Setting 