Ask #2

You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.  John 14:14 (NIV)

We have permission to ask.  There’s a big difference between “ask” and “tell.”   Some of us Christians seem to believe that if we can work up enough faith (often we’ll quote James 1:6-7 (But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.  That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord)……so we’ll grit our teeth and really try not to doubt and then “claim” some verses as a promise.  Then if we’ve gotten it all done exactly right, well then God HAS to do what we ask Him to do. 

My problem here is that if we think we’ve put God in a position where He HAS to do what we ask then we’re not really asking anymore, are we?  And if a god can be manipulated by people, like putting the change in a vending machine in just the right order and combination before we pull the lever to get our wish, then I’m sorry, that’s not really much of a god is it? 

I think sometimes we can unwittingly find ourselves in the position of trying to “tell” God what to do.  It would be like if my daughter comes to me and says, “You said last week that if I kept my room clean you would let me have friends come over and visit.  Just so you don’t try and weasel out, you should know I’ve got a recording of you saying it.  Well, Pops, I just cleaned my room.  Here’s the phone.  Get Sally over here to play with me.  Now.”  At this point, I’m not exactly receiving a request from a humble, obedient child, am I?  I doubt I would react at all positively.  God is much more patient and forgiving than I am as a father, but I still think we need to be really careful about the way we approach our Heavenly Father with our requests.  It’s personal; not a system.  He’s God; we’re not.  Ask; don’t tell.