God Promises to Hear – Part 2
How do you know what to ask God for?
Verse of the Day
“And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him.”
Today’s Devotional
Earlier this month we looked at God’s promise to hear us, based on Psalm 37:14. “The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles.”
Today’s verse gives us a little more clarity. We are to ask for things that please God.
Right now, how confident are you about the things you ask of God? When you pray, do you trust that God hears you?
I tend to be pretty transparent, as you may have picked up on. One of the things I really struggle with is knowing what pleases God. I KNOW the things that please Him on an intellectual level. But knowing which of my requests are pleasing to Him is something I tread lightly with.
The next logical question is, then, what pleases God?
Our faith pleases God. Hebrews 11:6 says, “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” This verse then makes me want to pray the same prayer from a man quoted in Mark 9:24: “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” God is not turned away by our doubts or fears or even by our weak faith. The Hebrews verse does not say that we can’t please God without BIG faith. It just says faith. Even our small faith is pleasing to Him.
Our obedience pleases God. Luke 6:46 says, “So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?” Jesus says in John 14:15, “If you love me you, obey my commandments.” Honestly, I think my obedience is a result of my trust. If I really trust Him, then when He wants me to do something that maybe I don’t want to do, do I trust Him enough to be obedient even when I don’t want to? My guess is that a prayer asking God for help to be obedient is music to His ears.
Our love pleases God. Jesus was asked by a bunch of religious guys which of the Ten Commandments was the #1 priority. I love His answer. Love God, love others. Then He says that all the laws are summed up in these two commands. Think about it. The first four commandments tell us how to love God. The other six tell us how to treat others. Jesus says in John 13:35 that people will know that we are His by how we love others. When I don’t know how, specifically, to best love another human, I ask for help.
OK, all of those things are great. But how can I trust God to hear and answer the prayers that do not fall into these categories? I guess that depends on what we are asking for. In my opinion, we can bring ALL things to Him. But, we can trust and be confident that He will answer us when we ask for more faith, when we ask for help to be obedient, and when we ask to be shown how to love. For all of the rest, I can only tell you what I do. When I ask for things, I also ask God that if my request is selfish to please reveal that to me. And then I ask for Him to change my heart, to turn me away from my selfishness. And I trust Him to do that, even while knowing that the answers to some of these prayers may not be pleasant. Do we trust God enough to pray for things that please Him instead of things that please us?
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How can you pray today for more faith?
How can you pray for God’s help to be obedient?
How can you ask God how to love Him better?
How can you ask for God’s help to love others?
Do you trust God enough to pray for things that please Him instead of asking for things that please you?