Like most children, my brood is overly excited for their respective
birthdays. They may not have a big party, nor mascots, or roomful of
gifts, but they do look forward to getting the things that make them
happy and feel special.
I let them pick the menu for the whole day: what they want for
breakfast, for school snack, for lunch, for afternoon snack and then
for their birthday dinner. We may not have guests over but they are
used to seeing our little house decorated for their family birthday
bash: our table with their favorite food and cake, sibling lootbags
filled with their favorite treats, wearing coordinated family shirts,
and receiving several gifts that they have been looking forward to all
year long.
They know that after church, we will celebrate at home, and we will be
having fun and games amongst ourselves, and open gifts.
Like parents who eagerly strive to make their children happy on their
special day, our Heavenly Father wants us to feel loved, feel joyful,
not just on our birthdays, but every single day.
“If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your
children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good
things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:11
The Lord longs to bless us with everyday provisions, and both
spiritual graces, and the things that we need.
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down
from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow
due to change.” James 1:17
And like our children who do not feel shy about telling us what they
want for their birthdays, or even on random days we, followers of
Jesus, should also not think twice about approaching God for our
requests.
“Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your
heart.” Psalm 37:4
Moreover, there is nothing that we cannot pray about to God. There is
nothing that He cannot handle, and there is nothing that we cannot ask
His help for. Our conversations with the Lord should not only be about
BIG TICKET, GOD-LEVEL supplications and guidance for life-changing
decisions. God also longs to bless us, strengthen us, and guide us in
our daily choices, in our everyday life.
“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he
exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.” Isaiah 30:18
But how do we get the confidence to approach the Lord for our
requests? Well, we establish a relationship with Him by surrendering
our life to Him, praying everyday, studying His word daily,
worshipping Him in Church, and abiding in His teachings.
While God is not a vending machine nor a genie, we can count on Him to
give us the best outcome in any given situation that we bring before
Him. “Best outcome,” however, may not always pertain to the outcome
that we are hoping for. It may mean a development that will further
purify us and strengthen our faith and relationship with Him.
In the end, when we nurture a loving relationship with our Savior —
that we are willing to yield to His will at all times, we get to live
the meaningful life He has long planned for us.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to
prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to
you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your
heart. I will be found by you,” Jeremiah 29:11-14a
And just like the passage above, we will get to experience “God’s
Best” when we seek Him first, and declare our full dependence on Him.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard
your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
Thank you for reading through our devotional today. I invite you to
ponder on Psalm 37:1-7 to dig deeper on today’s topic.
Reflection Question: Do you feel confident praying to God about
everything in your life?
Conversation with the Lord: Heavenly Father, thank you for assuring us
that we can pray about everything. That you are concerned about every
little detail of our lives and that you are glorified when we declare
our full dependence on you. Give us the confidence to continue
approaching your throne of grace for both the big things and the
little things. Amen.
“The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.”
Proverbs 10:22
