Scripture
In the same way the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings.
~Roman 8:26, CSB
Quote
If a thing is boring and static; you may be sure it is not from God.
~Calvin Miller
My infinite ignorance ceases to amaze me. Rarely do I work through my devotions without discovering something new. Two months ago, I didn’t know who Calvin Miller was or that he was so near. Now I have read INTO THE DEPTHS and in the process of reading his devotional, UNTIL HE COMES. I came across his name in one of the books I was reading. Last Saturday, I came across another book by Edith Nesbit, FIVE CHILDREN AND IT. You can find the video version on YouTube. It is about five children who discover an ancient sand fairy who grants them one wish per day. But the children soon learn that every wish brings them more trouble than happiness because they cannot foresee the results of getting the things they wish for. Jesus taught us to ask and He Himself intreated the Father. Paul also said, “Make your request known to God.” How do we reconcile this with Matthew 6:8, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask.”
Prayer is a mystery, no one understands all the dynamics of prayer, but all the notable servants of God have been people who knew something about prayer. So I am not discouraging you from asking. What I do discourage is asking for something in connection with your lust for pleasures. In other words, don’t pray selfishly and always make your prayers conditional…If God wills. If not for the prayer of Mary, they would have run out of wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. There are things that you and I will not have unless we ask for them, but we must always trust God’s wisdom to give us what we really need, rather than what we want. I use to pray for God to make me a great preacher. In time I discovered something about great preachers that disturbed me; they all suffered some deep hurt or loss. Adrian Rogers had an infant son die in his arms. Ron Dunn had a son commit suicide. When I made that discovery, I stopped praying for God to make me a great preacher. Be careful what you ask for but don’t stop asking. Our Heavenly Father enjoys giving good things to those who ask Him.
Extra
Day one of the Bible Study went Ok, the teaching session was nothing to write home about but I enjoyed the worship service. I am locking myself in today for study in hopes that I will do better tonight. I hope you have a great day and a great week. As always, thanks for reading the blog.