Sometimes what I read in the Bible and what seems to be going on in 'real life' don't always line up. John 14:13 and 14:14 say this: And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. That is Jesus speaking, hence the red letters for those of you who appreciate that.
An excellent Bible teacher I know always says, "Make sure you aren't taking scripture out of context, and make sure you aren't reading a bunch of stuff into it that really isn't there. The Bible was intended for everyone, so God didn't make it all super complicated and full of hidden meanings. What scripture says, is usually what scripture means." Well, that is mostly what he says, I kind of summarized and added a few words that he wouldn't have used, but you get the idea.
John 15:16 says this: "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name." That is Jesus speaking again.
Is anyone else picking up a pattern here? I am pretty sure there are three places that say, whatever I ask God for, He's going to give it to me. I am sure that is what it says, and when I read both those chapters in John, it seems to mean what it says within the context of the rest of what Jesus says. So, really, what's up with that?
You and I both know that we've asked God for a lot of things and haven't ever gotten them. For example, my bank account still has a rather low balance compared to the amount of money circulating in the world. And believe me, I've ASKED. And mostly, I've even had good reasons and sound, logical arguments to present to God.
"If you let me win a lotto, I would do this for that mission." "I would build an orphanage, I would build a homeless shelter, I would build a school somewhere that needs a school. And I would make sure everyone in all of those places knew it was You that had made it possible." And I would, in a heartbeat, do any of those things if I had unlimited cash. I have asked, but I have not received, and until just this morning, I have been ticked off about it.
Here's the newest piece of the puzzle for me. I just had an overwhelming sense today, that if I kept asking, I would eventually receive EXACTLY what I was asking for. I am quite convinced of that all of a sudden. If I asked God four or maybe five or maybe fifty five more times, He would let me win a lotto. And, also for some mysterious reason, I am just as convinced that I would be miserable if He did. I'd be having to say 'no' to people asking me for help, and I don't handle that well. I'd always be wondering if I'd invested it in the right thing. I'd be stressed out about how much I should be tithing and how much I should be giving over and above my tithing, etcetera, etcetera.
Kind of like when you are baking and one of your kids says, "Mom, that smells so yummy, can I have a taste of it?" "No, it is vanilla extract, it smells good, but it tastes disgusting by itself." "No it doesn't, please Mom, I want a taste of it." "No, you don't really." "Yes, I DO!" "Well all right then." They don't usually believe you that if they wait until the cake is baked, it will taste super nummy. They don't believe you because it's not what they think they want. Now, for those of you who have never tried the vanilla experiment, none of this will make sense. I don't recommend tasting vanilla extract, but I am sure you will anyway. I wish I could be there to see your faces.
Back to the point. I think we ask God for things that we feel are full of wisdom and divine intentions when really they aren't. Or maybe they just aren't of the same caliber of wisdom or quite as full of divinity as say... His ideas. Generally, I think it is safe to say, the plans He already has for our lives will have eternal value if we don't complicate them with our own.
Matthew 26:36-42 and Mark 14:32-42 tell us about Jesus' time in the garden of Gethsemane. They are brief accounts. I sometimes wonder if that was really all that Jesus and the Father spoke about that night, but that is just speculation, and the gist of the accounts - strictly as we read them - applies here I believe. Jesus was basically asking, "Seriously, this is how it has to happen? You're sure there is no other way we could do this 'saving the human race' thing? Well, alright then, You make the call." (I apologize to those readers who are offended to think Jesus might speak like a nineteen year old of our generation. And I apologize to those nineteen year olds who are reading this and thinking, "That is NOT how I would speak. Where is my LOL Cat Bible?") Of course, that is an incredibly flippant summary of Jesus' time in Gethsemane. Jesus knew what was coming and was in AGONY over it, I think Luke tells us that Jesus even sweat drops of blood. But still, He ASKED if there was another way to get it done. And if I've read correctly, He asked two, maybe three times. And I bet that two or maybe three times, the Father asked back, "Are you SURE you want to change the plan?" But in the end, and mercifully for us, Jesus chose the will of our Father.
There is a chance now that I am going out on a limb and may earn myself some 'you are crazy' responses, but worse things have happened. I am basing this next round of rambling on a comment a bit further on in Matthew's gospel (26:53-54) "Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?” That was Jesus, too. And I'm pretty sure that means - brace yourselves - He could have called the whole 'saving the human race' thing off. Pick your jaw up off your laptop, but keep that question in your head: Where would we be if He would have called the whole thing off? Where would we be?
Now, here I could list a bunch of descriptive alternatives of where we would be, but I will leave that to your vivid imaginations and sum it all up by saying, "nowhere good, that is for sure.."
I remember when my Grandfather was in the hospital for the last time. I prayed and I prayed, I asked God to heal him. In my opinion, Grandpa was too young to leave us that soon. I threw the whole arsenal of the above scripture at God along with a few extras. When I knew the end was near, I got mad. Was God not listening, was He listening and just ignoring, did He not know I was just quoting His own words to Him? Yes, He did know and on top of that He knew so much more.
Grandpa was in a terrible state, he was no longer coherent, his body was pretty much just a skeleton with a bit of skin on it, he had been that way for what seemed like forever. It was not good and it wasn't getting better. A very wise nurse told our family, 'he is just waiting for all of you to say good-bye.' You can bet I didn't like that piece of advice. But it was true. The family decided to 'let him go'. We all took turns with Grandpa alone, saying our good-byes and telling him how much we loved him and asking him to say hello to Grandma for us when he got there. Within fifteen minutes of the last family member saying good-bye, Grandpa was gone from this world. THAT was not the answer I had been looking for.
But now, I can speculate. I can speculate that Grandpa didn't want to be here, he missed Grandma terribly and for as much as he loved us, his heart was there with her. I can speculate that God knew how I was feeling and may have even considered for a moment granting me my request, but in the end, He did what was best for Grandpa and He full well knew that ten years or so down the road, I would be able to see and I would be able to speculate.
So all that to say, if I could have heard God then putting the question to me this way, "Do you want to feel better by having your Grandpa around for a few more years in a desperate state of loneliness or do you want me to bring him home?" I think I would have not been so angry. I think I would have known I wasn't being ignored. But that was then and this is now.
I find it incredibly cool to consider that I could call on my Father and He would put legions of angels at my disposal (and you can bet that would be a party). Would that be the best thing for me to ask for? Depends on the circumstance I guess. Would I pout if I asked and He didn't send me the angels? After today, I would hope not.
So to sum it all up. When we are asking over and over for something and it doesn't seem to get answered, maybe we should change the question. His solutions to problems are the best for everyone involved. Sometimes God answers us the best by not answering us at all.
