When I think of Jesus answering prayers, I usually think of “yes,” “no,” “wait,” “not now,” etc. I tend to think of Jesus answering my prayers directly. Example:
Me: “Father, is this your will?”
Jesus: “Yes it is. Go with my blessing.”
Except, it almost exclusively NEVER goes like that for me.
Typically it is me asking…asking again…and again…and again, as He begins to take me on this journey, where I almost completely forget that I asked Him a question. A journey where I begin to change, discover, and have revelations. A journey that His Word begins to be made known in my life. In fact it often feels like, the more growth/maturity, the harder, longer, and more silent the journey.
“Ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking, for everyone who asks receives, everyone who seeks finds, everyone who knocks, to them it will be opened.” -Jesus
To ask, seek, or knock you have to be aware that something is missing. To search you have to realize He isn’t in some places. But, you have to look here to see if He is there.
The temptation is to beg, but this isn’t talking about begging and pleading. This is talking about faith. I believe Jesus will take me on the proper journey, on the proper path, to get to the proper answer. I am asking in faith. I am seeking in faith. I am knocking in faith, and trusting the process, the journey, no matter how scary and lonely it may get, or seem. No matter how bad it seems to hurt, I am going to keep seeking. No matter what I have to face in me, in the dark, secret places, I will continue forward allowing Jesus to do His perfect work in me.
Thats the whole point, right? For Jesus to have His perfect work in us, for Christ to be formed in us. That is how I want to be defined, as someone who is allowing Christ to be formed in him.
We want the quick answer, but Jesus wants to teach, to show, to give you experiential knowledge that will not easily leave you, so that you can share with someone else, to further them down their road.
jareddoran 