Come In Confidence

Good Morning!! When we teach on prayer, we often use many of the following verses, as references. Regardless of the audience to whom we are speaking,...because almost everyone is familiar with at least some of these verses. In the gospels, Jesus tells us to "ask" for things. Matthew 7:7 says,..."Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you." (Emphasis added)...A few chapters later, Jesus says, "And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive." (Matthew 21:22)...When you study the gospels, you will notice that Jesus makes it clear that asking and believing, go hand in hand. In other words: when we pray, we need to pray (or ask) in faith.

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.—1 John 5:14-15 (NIV)

John gives us a clearer picture of that faith by using the word "confidence" in how we approach God in prayer,...but how many of us really come to the Lord in confidence? Many people feel that if they are not praying God's Will, then they can not approach Him in confidence. They try to figure out what God wants them to pray before they come to Him in prayer. That approach is confusing and can lead to misguided, fruitless prayers. How can we ever truly know God's will? Let's not put the cart before the horse; start with the basics of prayer. Start with asking. Go to the Lord in honesty and humility and tell Him where your heart is. Tell Him that you are not sure what His will may be for you but that you want to know. Tell Him that you are not sure what to pray but these are the things on your heart. Ask the Lord to help you pray in confidence and to approach His throne of grace with boldness (Hebrews 4:16).

The Lord already knows our wants, needs and desires,
...He just wants us to come and fellowship with Him.

Father God, we open our hearts to You in honesty,...and trust Your Spirit to help us with the rest. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

"Investing in the less fortunate, is investing in God."