Luke 11:1-13
It was moving day and I remember praying. I simply asked God to hold off the rain. I was concerned about carrying wet items into the house, but more concerned about safety and slipping on the angled unloading ramp. I prayed and God answered. Then there was the time when Dad died and I drove through the night asking God, “Why?” God did answer but only partially. Finally, there are the lists of requests that I have made and God has seemingly answered, “No.” I think that often our prayer life is tied to answers that we get. When God answers then we keep praying, but when God does not answer… well the prayers get shorter or nonexistent. In Luke 11:1-13 we see Jesus give instructions on how to pray. When we pray we declare that we depend on God for all things because we firmly believe that He alone is reliable. We come requesting God to provide our daily needs, forgive our sin and keep us from sin (3-4). At times we don’t persist in prayer because we face challenges in life and question if God cares. As Jesus illustrates in verse 5-8, persistence in prayer believes that only God can provide what is needed because He cares. Prayer strengthens our faith in God as we confidently ask His direction, seek His answers and knock on the doors that only He will open (9-10). When we pray asking, seeking and knocking we communicate our belief that God is in control of all things, even when we may not see it. Because God is in control we call on Him in prayer. Finally, in verses 11-13 we can thank God for displaying His goodness by giving us His Spirit to guide us in all things. God desires a continual relationship with us through our prayer with Him.
For more see QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
It was moving day and I remember praying. I simply asked God to hold off the rain. I was concerned about carrying wet items into the house, but more concerned about safety and slipping on the angled unloading ramp. I prayed and God answered. Then there was the time when Dad died and I drove through the night asking God, “Why?” God did answer but only partially. Finally, there are the lists of requests that I have made and God has seemingly answered, “No.” I think that often our prayer life is tied to answers that we get. When God answers then we keep praying, but when God does not answer… well the prayers get shorter or nonexistent. In Luke 11:1-13 we see Jesus give instructions on how to pray. When we pray we declare that we depend on God for all things because we firmly believe that He alone is reliable. We come requesting God to provide our daily needs, forgive our sin and keep us from sin (3-4). At times we don’t persist in prayer because we face challenges in life and question if God cares. As Jesus illustrates in verse 5-8, persistence in prayer believes that only God can provide what is needed because He cares. Prayer strengthens our faith in God as we confidently ask His direction, seek His answers and knock on the doors that only He will open (9-10). When we pray asking, seeking and knocking we communicate our belief that God is in control of all things, even when we may not see it. Because God is in control we call on Him in prayer. Finally, in verses 11-13 we can thank God for displaying His goodness by giving us His Spirit to guide us in all things. God desires a continual relationship with us through our prayer with Him.
For more see QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
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