Have you ever prayed for something and you didn’t get it? Believed
for something, believed God for something….then it didn’t come to pass? In
fact, it went the opposite way. Did you ever say to yourself “Why doesn’t God care”,
“God didn’t hear my prayers”, “God must not love me”, or even “God must not be
real”?
Lets switch gears. As a parent, have you ever told your
child “no” to something that he/she keeps asking you for over and over again? “Please
let me go to Tylers house and stay the night”. However, you know Tylers house
to be unsafe.
You child only sees and knows that Tyler is a great friend.
He sees that knows that Tyler is fun to play with.
What your child cannot see are some facts that you, as a
wise adult, know. Maybe Tylers parents do drugs and drug deals go down there.
You don’t explain all of this to your child because they are too young to understand
that. However, every time the child asks you….you keep telling him no. For
his/her own good.
Sometimes God says no. If we could see what He see’s and
know what He know’s we would understand. You can be sure that God loves you. He
wants the best for you. He desires to bless you.
Sometimes as a parent you keep telling your child over and
over again, don’t touch that stove, it is hot. However, day after day your
child insists on touching the stove. One day, you see them going to touch it
AGAIN for the millionth time.
This time, you see they are not going to pull a pot of
boiling water down on themselves, but only touch the door of the stove. You know
that it will sting, but not bring much harm, so you let them do it. Why? Think
about that for a moment.
Over time the burn healed. What it taught the child though,
was that you tried to protect them. You told them the truth. Their own defiance
and stubbornness caused them to get that burn….not you. Even though they may
not have known that it was for their own good at that time….you knew. You love
them and always want the best for them. It was better for them to get that
sting, then to pull that pot of boiling water down on themselves later on down
the road.
In the Bible, Jesus said to have a child like faith. Why?
Matthew 18:3 Then he said, "I tell you the truth, unless you turn from
your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom
of Heaven.
Even though children can show great defiance and stubbornness
at times….they still love and trust their parents. (Now, I am not speaking of
abusive parents. I am speaking of good parents.) Have you ever noticed how a
child will, without fear, jump from something into their parents arms? They
know that they will catch them. They know that they will not let them fall.
They feel so safe in their parents arms.
If they are sick, they go straight to their parents. If they
need advice, they go straight to their parents and ask. If they are in need of
some provision, they ask. They know where their help comes from.
I believe Jesus used that comparison to show us a few
things. We should be like little children with Father God. Our relationship
should be like that of a child to its parents. After all, He is our Abba
Father. We are His adopted children. He loves us with such a great love.
Look at this…Matthew 7:11 So if you sinful people know how
to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father
give good gifts to those who ask him.
“Well, I prayed”, you say. Well, maybe what you were praying
for wasn’t a “good” gift. It wasn’t what was best for you, or for those around
you. In our minds sometimes we cant understand it. But even though we don’t understand
the why, we should always trust in Him because He loves us.
His thoughts are higher than our thoughts, His ways are
higher than our ways. The next time you run into a problem and you think He didn’t
answer. He did. It just wasn’t the answer you wanted or expected. But He
answered.
Always go to Him. He is there for you. He will never leave
you nor forsake you. He will never give you up. It gives Him great pleasure to
bless you. He has great plans for you, to prosper you, not to harm you. He will
do a great work in you, if you let Him.
God is a living Spirit. We are spirits living in this human
body. God is eternal. Our spirits are eternal. Even when someones body dies, they,
their spirit, is not dead. It lives forever and all eternity. That’s why God doesn’t
see death as the end. It isn’t.
We all have free will, we all have a choice. Choose to be
His child and run and jump into His arms and know that He wont drop you. He
will never drop you.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,"
says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you
a future and a hope.