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Sometimes you and I make the Christian life more difficult than it needs to be. (I heard a few honest sighs in the background).
One of the many things I love about Jesus Christ is how the truth He taught in the Bible makes the Kingdom of God and salvation simple. Simple enough for a thick-headed, self-centered, questioning, stubborn guy like me. It is too easy to make walking by faith difficult, to overthink belief, to complicate what is simple, to try and figure out why God does what He does. I wonder if our heavenly Father sits on His throne and shakes His head in bewilderment as to why His followers make living for Christ difficult. Just a thought! For instance, what about prayer? You and I can be tempted to turn praying into a spiritual ritual, a dogmatic exercise, a complicated dialogue of do’s and don’ts when conversing with the Lord. Jesus cuts through the proverbial mustard regarding prayer in Matthew 7:7-11. “Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find, knock, and it shall be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives and he who seeks finds and to him who knocks it shall be opened. Or what man is there among you, when his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he shall ask for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is good to them that ask Him?” Wow! Prayer and God’s response is profoundly simple.
I am a father and grandfather. I love to give good things to my children when they ask. Warms my heart to bless them. Of course, I would never give them a rock when they asked for a Ding Dong! Or a snake if they asked me for some salmon. You and I are sinful, imperfect human beings. Certainly not very godlike at times. But we still give good things to our kids. Why? Because we love them. “How much more” does God love us who are His sons and daughters through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. God is a God of more, not less. Worth thinking about. If you and I would give good things to our children, why is it hard for you and me to believe that God wants to give you and me good things even more than you would to your kids? God is not stingy with His love and goodness. He lavishes, pours His everlasting love, mercy, grace and abundant goodness upon those He loves and those who ask. I like that! I hope you do too! Today there is a trending phrase that goes like this. “I love you. I love you more!” Nice. Guess what? As God’s kids we love Him, and you guessed it, He responds I love you more. Out of His “I love you more” flows “How much more.” How is your prayer life? Are you asking, seeking and knocking? Jesus said to ask. Put your faith in action to ask God for the good things He promises in His word. I challenge you this week to ask, then receive “how much more” God has planned for you. Keep prayer simple. Believe God has your best interest at heart and will give good things to you because you ask! “You do not have because you do not ask.” James 4:4 “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32 “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly beyond all we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:20 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in all things, you may have an abundance for every good deed.” II Corinthians 9:8 A Word For Your Week: Expect God to do much more than you thought He would. |
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