Have you ever wondered why many of your prayers aren't answered?''
One of Jesus' closest disciples, James suggested two reasons: Asking wrongly, or not asking at all.
It is certainly true that God wants to hear from you and me, and that He wants to answer us when we cry for help. Over and over Jesus said "ask" and "He will give it to you."
The problem is asking wrongly.
Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! It's never worked on you and it doesn't on God either.
But a request out of closeness generally works. The more I know God because of our intimacy the more I am apt to recognize and request His desires. They become my desires.
The Lord's prayer spells this out. It is broken into two parts -- first stuff and second stuff. First stuff is relationship (Our Father), worship (Holy is Your Name), and unity of purpose (Thy kingdom come).
God wants relationship. It is the basis for our communication with Him, and our communication with Him is the basis for our level of intimacy.
(This is the second of a series on Intimacy with God. E-mail vhs@fishrapper.net for complete transcript.)
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