humble yourselves – Meghan E White

Have you stopped praying? Maybe you didn’t get what you wanted, or you don’t see the point in prayer. It’s time to start praying again.

God loves His children. So much so, that He delights in answering our prayers. We are to ask, seek, and knock. This is one of my favorite passages of scripture in the New Testament. I have worn out this page in my Bible since I have read this time, and time again. The message is powerful, and true.

7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

Matthew 7:7-12, NIV

Jesus spoke these words as part of The Sermon on the Mount. He said a lot in this awe inspiring sermon, and these few verses are just one part of it.

Prayer is important. Jesus tells us to pray. These three steps of asking, seeking, and knocking are different aspects of praying to God.

Ask humbly and confidently.

Seek with a hunger and a desire for God’s will.

Knock with expectancy and fervency,

We are not knocking on a wall. We are knocking on a door, God’s door. That door is meant to open for His children.

Do you ever feel like you are pounding on a brick wall when you are praying? You are knocking on a door. “To the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

“His doors are meant to open: they were made on purpose for entrance; and so the blessed gospel of God is made on purpose for you to enter into life and peace. It would be of no use to knock at a wall, but you may wisely knock at a door, for it is arranged for opening.” -Charles Spurgeon

How much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

God loves to give good gifts to us. Even more than that, He loves to give beyond what we have asked of Him. God loves to bless His children. How amazing is God! More amazing than anyone or anything. He is perfect, Holy God.

When my children are hungry, and ask me for something to eat, of course I am going to give it to them. I am an imperfect, sinful person and I like to give good things to my children. Yet God, who is perfect, will give us more than just a piece of bread. Sometimes it is just the bread, the basic necessities, and sometimes it’s a whole lot more.

Needs and desires are an opportunity for us to come to the Father. To lay all our requests at His feet with expectation of an answer. The answer may not be immediate, or may not be what we want. When we release our desires to the Father we are giving Him full control over the outcome. God only does what is good for us, so we can trust our prayers in His mighty, sovereign hands. God is God, and I am not.

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

I love how this passage ends with Jesus reminding us to treat others the way we want to be treated. It takes the focus off of us and our needs. We are to put others above ourselves. We do not treat others the way they treat us, we treat others the way we want to be treated. The only way we can live out “The Golden Rule” is by asking, seeking, and knocking. We can’t be seeking God, and asking Him for help, and then treat others terribly.

God is available to His children 24/7. His door is ready to be opened for those who knock.

There are blessings with your name on them from God. Keep asking, seeking, and knocking!

Love you all,

Meghan

Please leave me your prayer requests. I’d love to pray for you!

Anxiety. Depression. Fear. Worry. I see the same issues over, and over again on social media, and all over the internet. Friends and family are struggling with these things too. I’ve had my own issues with worry over the years. I am quite good at it at times. We are all dealing with problems. As Christians we are not immune from trouble. Jesus tells us we will have trouble in this world, but to be encouraged since He has overcome the world (John 16:33). The trouble will come. I know that sounds like bad news. It is the reality of living in a fallen world. So how do we deal with the anxiety and worry about our struggles?

Psalm 55:22 “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.”

Cast in Hebrew is from the root word shalak, and it means to throw, cast, hurl, fling. This changed everything for me years ago when I understood what cast really meant. This was a new revelation for me from the Holy Spirit. I had read this verse so many times over the years. Now, it has taken on a whole new meaning. If I throw, hurl, or fling my cares on the Lord I don’t have them anymore. He’s got them. And, even better, He will take care of me and won’t let me fall. But first, I have to throw my stress and worry on Him. This is not a question, or a suggestion. This is a command.

1 Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

Cast in Greek is epiripto. It’s definition is to throw upon, cast upon. Same meaning as the Hebrew word for cast. In the New Testament, the message repeats itself. Again, this is not a question, or a suggestion. This is a command. The verse just before this tells us to humble ourselves first, and that God will lift us up in due time (1 Peter 5:6). So an important part of throwing, or casting our anxiety on the Lord is humbling ourselves. It takes humility to let go of our fears and give them to God. This act means we are trusting Him to handle our anxiety His way. This can be scary.

Do I trust God to sustain me? His word is clear that He will never let the righteous fall, yet I hold on to my cares and burdens. For me, it’s about control and letting go. I want God to answer my prayers exactly how, and when I say. I have been a Christian long enough to know that it doesn’t work this way. I have to fully surrender to His plan every day. His plan for me is for good, and He always takes care of me. Always.

This is why it is so important to be in the word of God daily. Feelings and emotions can trick us into thinking God has abandon us. That is a lie. God is perfect. He will never let the righteous fall. We have to cast our cares and anxieties on Him. In fact, He tells us to do so. Throw, hurl, toss your cares on the Lord today! Now that’s a sort of shocking image. Tossing and hurling our troubles on the Lord. Once we cast our cares on Him they are His. Wow! God loves us that much! He is unbelievably good! Praise Him!

Now, I know this can be difficult to do. I can cast my cares on Him and then moments later take them right back. There is no limit to how many times we are to cast our cares on the Lord. If we have to cast our anxiety on Him every moment because the burden is heavy and the pain is so deep, then do it. No one on this earth can care for you the way God can. He’s telling us to throw our burdens on Him. Let’s take Him at His word, and do it!

Love you all,

Meghan

Tag: humble yourselves

Keep Asking, Seeking, and Knocking

Cast Your Cares On Him