Tuesday Reading: Hebrews 11:39-40
Key Verse: Hebrews 11:39
39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, did not receive the promise,
Devotion:
How many times have you wished for something that you have yet to receive? How many times have you wanted something, and still not got it? How many things do you still seek out? Have you ever wondered why people continue to ask things of God if they don’t seem to get them? Maybe you have been asking Him for something and are still waiting.
Well, it is not the fact that you are going to receive what you ask for that should drive you forward but the fact that you believe that you will obtain it when the time is right. We seek things all the time and do not think of all of the variables in the equation. Maybe we ask for sunshine because we don’t want it to rain; how do we know that a farmer does not require that rain so that the crops will be able to feed one thousand people. Maybe we ask for a miracle cure when God can see that the scientist will be able to use this one life to find the cure for millions that will follow. You see, we just don’t know it all... but God does...
That does not mean that we must stop asking because that would be giving up on our faith in God. If we don’t ask we are saying that God is not listening to us and that it does not matter what we do because God will do His own things anyway! Nothing could be further from the truth because it is what we pray for that God listens to each and every day. It is us lifting up our prayers and opening our hearts is what God is waiting for. We cannot simply have faith that He will do it all right. We need to show God that we have faith in asking for things, knowing that what we ask for will make a difference. Placing our faith in Christ does not mean giving up our requests but rather making them all know to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. How will other learn of such a great thing as faith unless we are willing to demonstrate it just like Christ did before us?
Points to Ponder:
What do you ask for when people ask what you want?
God has already asked what we want – what are you praying for?
