Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened  (Matthew 7:7-8).

This passage gives my flesh fits.  After all, there are plenty of things that my flesh wants that it doesn’t get.   And I’m not just talking about stuff. The healing of a relationship, the salvation of a friend–sometimes we ask for good things, righteous things, and we don’t get them.  “Ask and it will be given to you,” doesn’t always seem to apply.

That’s annoying, and painful, and sometimes a little faith-rocking.

Perhaps, Beloved, the key to this verse lies in remembering God’s priorities.  This isn’t a cop-out or a rationalization–it’s truth. When he thinks of you, God’s biggest concern isn’t your finances or your career or even the other people in your life.  It’s your relationship with him. He wants to draw you in, bring you closer, make you more like his Son. In these things, the sky’s the limit. You don’t have to wonder if what you request would be best.  You don’t have to pray, “If it’s your will.”

You becoming more Christlike is always his will.

So…ask to draw nearer to him.  Seek a closer relationship. Knock at the door of his heart.  He’s waiting.

Happy Monday, Beloved.