Do We Limit God by Our Prayers?

Limiting God is an interesting concept.

I mean, God is omnipotent (all powerful) right? So how could we, wimpy frail humanity limit the almighty God of the universe?

But we can.

Scripture says so.

James 4:2 says "You do not have because you do not ask."

And sometimes we limit God because we ask for something with wrong motives (James 4:3).

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to ask God for something "impossible." Many of you know that I recently accepted the position as editor for South Carolina's Reach Out, Columbia magazine. As I prepared to assume this position, I knew I could no longer postpone the purchase of a laptop computer. My nine-year old desktop dinosaur was not a safe repository for all the information for which I would be responsible.

As I placed my order for my new laptop, I read the shipping date with a sinking heart. "This product will be available to ship on October 16."

October 16?! That was two days AFTER my important meeting with the current editor, during which I was supposed to receive all the files and downloads from the magazine!  October 16 was TOO LATE!!!

In vain I tried calling all the electronics stores in town to see if they might have the model I wanted to order, but to no avail.

Finally, I clicked "Purchase" on the Dell website and sighed. I supposed I would make due until the computer arrived sometime after October 16.

And then, an amazing thing happened.

Faith flickered up in my heart.

I remembered the words of James 4:2 -- "You do not have, because you do not ask God."

Now I am not naive enough to believe that God is going to give me everything I ask for simply because I ask for it. He is too wise and too loving for that. He knows much more about my situation than I do, and many times will override my prayers because He knows He has a better plan.

But faith bubbled up in me as I put my request through the filter of God's word.  I was not asking with wrong motives -- I simply wanted to be able to handle my new responsibility as editor as conscientiously as possible from Day 1. I was not asking for something bad or selfish. I was just considering asking God to override the shipping policy of one of the biggest electronics companies in the world for my benefit.

I realized that it might be God's will for me to wait on my computer, but I also realized that I might be limiting God's hand by not having enough faith to ask Him to help my computer arrive in time for my meeting.  "You have not because you ask not" was ringing in my ears.

And so my prayer went something like this: "God, thank you for the opportunity to assume this new role as editor. This opportunity came from your hand. Now God, in order to do this job well, I need a laptop. And I reeeealy need a laptop by Monday, October 14. Actually God, since I'm asking you for the impossible anyway, it would be especially helpful to have it by Saturday, October 12, so I will have some time to become familiar with it before the meeting on Monday. Would you be gracious to me and bring my computer to me in time?"

And then I went a step further.

I decided if I was going to go out on a faith limb, I was going to go all the way out. I called two of my prayer partners and asked them to pray for the impossible with me. Then I called my daughter.

"I ordered the new laptop that I need for my meeting on Monday, but it's not scheduled to ship until Wednesday," I said.

"Uh, how's that gonna work?" she asked me.

"Oh, I asked God to bring it to me by Saturday."

"Uh huh," she replied.


Thursday afternoon there was a knock at my door.

It was the Fed Ex man with my new computer in his hand.

"WOW!" I rejoiced, "You are an ANSWER TO PRAYER!"

"People say that to me all the time," he replied.

"Oh, if you only knew. . . " I said in return.

I wonder sometimes, how many "miraculous" answers to prayer I have missed simply because I accepted the "facts" of my situation without surrendering them in faith to my heavenly Father?

May I never be guilty again of missing a blessing God has for me simply because I fail to ask.

Will you join me in faith as we go before the throne of God with confidence?

Will you join me in believing God?

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Do You Believe in Fairies?

One of my favorite movies is Peter Pan.  I love the whimsy of pixie dust, the magic of a faraway land where children never grew old, and the excitement of the age-old battle between good and evil.

One of the most poignant scenes in the movie is when Tinkerbell the fairy, remorseful over her jealous act against Wendy, flies straight into the heat of the battle between Peter and Captain Hook.  She is injured in the fray, and lies near death, her little fairy glow growing dimmer and dimmer.

Peter rallies the children all over the word to chant, "I DO believe in fairies. I DO. I DO believe in fairies. I DO! I DO!"  The collective force of their belief infuses life into little Tinkerbell, and she rises from near death to live again.

Some in our world equate the Christian faith with believing in fairies.  They believe it to be a warm fuzzy hope with little basis.

I beg to differ.

The fifth chapter of Mark gives us an example of the power of true faith. Jairus is a religious man.  One of the rulers of the synagogue, he was part of the establishment that was opposing Jesus.  But his young daughter lay near death, and he was desperately seeking Jesus' help. Falling at Jesus' feet, he begged him earnestly, "Come and lay Your  hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live."

The Master responded immediately, but on the way to Jairus' home, servants brought word that the child had died.  "Your daughter is dead," his servants reported, "Why trouble the Teacher any further?"

"As soon as Jesus heard the words that were spoken, he said, 'Do not be afraid; only believe.'"  We know the glorious end of this story -- that Jesus entered the home, took the child by the hand, spoke her name, and raised her from the dead.

Unlike believing in the fairies of Peter Pan's Neverland, though, the faith that Jairus exercised was vastly different. Instead of hoping in something that had no basis, Jairus placed his faith in God Himself.

Unike Jairus, who had a limited understanding of Christ, we have the whole canon of scripture and the proof of history on which to base our faith.  

The resurrection of Christ, which is the validation of His claim to be God in the flesh, is one of the most historically attested facts of our age.The authenticity of the Bible cannot be disproved, and has been affirmed over and over by discoveries of science and archaeology. Whenever there is a "new" discovery that skeptics believe will discount scripture, it instead serves to confirm the biblical account.  Josh McDowell's books Evidence that Demands a Verdict and More than a Carpenter and  Lee Strobel's The Case for Christ catalog many of the indisputable proofs of the truth of Christ.

Jairus based his faith not on warm fuzzy sentiment, but on cold hard facts. Jesus Christ had the power to raise the dead, heal the sick, and save souls. We know that Jairus' faith was rewarded. He received his child back from the dead.

Unlike believing in fairies, we pray to the same God Who raised Jairus' daughter. Like the account of long ago, Jesus hears our prayers, cares about our struggles, and wants to work in our lives.  Most importantly, he has the power to glorify himself in your situation.  If you're struggling in your faith walk today, allow the words of Jesus to speak to your heart.


"Do not be afraid; only believe."

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How to Amaze God

"You are AMAZING!"

Maybe you long to hear these words from your spouse, your boss, your children, your students, or even your mother-in-law.  How much MORE exciting would it be to hear these words from God?  According to the New Testament, there are two ways we can amaze God. 

The first way to amaze God is to doubt him.

In Mark 6, Jesus was visiting his hometown, teaching and preaching in the synagogue.  The people from Nazareth were impressed by his teaching and curious about the miracles He had performed in other towns, but they were struggling with one detail of his ministry.  They were offended to think that this man who had grown up among them had the audacity to want to be Lord over their lives.  They took offense.

Their disbelief and lack of faith had this result:  "He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them."

"And He was amazed at their lack of faith."

I wonder how many times I amaze God this way?  How many times do I read His promises, hear His Word preached, see His hand in my life and in the lives of others, and continue to doubt and disbelieve?  How often do I take offense at God when He instructs me to surrender a stronghold in my life? How often do I hold something tightly in my fist, not allowing God to take it out, all the while failing to realize that clenching my fist also prevents Him from putting anything in? Is God amazed at my lack of faith?

The second way to amaze God is to believe Him.

Luke 7 tells of a Roman centurion whose beloved servant was sick.  Like the people in Nazareth, he too had heard of Jesus.  Perhaps he had heard Jesus preach, for the Bible says he loved the Jewish nation and had given money to help build a synagogue.  When he heard Jesus was in town, he sent elders to speak on his behalf.  "Please heal my servant," was his request.

Jesus, in response to his faith, immediately started toward his home.  "When He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, 'Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.'"

"And Jesus was amazed at him,

and turning to the crowd following Him, He said,'I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.' 

I wonder how many times I amaze God this way?  How many times do I read His promises, hear His Word preached, see His hand in my life and in the lives of others, and choose to trust and believe?   How often do I quickly and willingly obey when He instructs me to surrender a stronghold in my life? How often do I hold something loosely in my hands, trusting Him to remove anything I do not need and replace it with every good and perfect gift?  Is God amazed at my faith?

I want to amaze God with my faith.  Let's be AMAZING together!

Like a Weaned Child

When my daughter was a baby, she was not the most patient infant.  She would go from sleeping to screaming in less than a minute.  What began as a whimper would soon become a cry, which would escalate into a full-blown wail, complete with red face, kicking feet, and thrashing arms.  The whole neighborhood knew when she was hungry.

As time passed, she learned that she didn't have to scream and thrash to let us know she had a need.  She didn't panic when the first whimper went unattended.  Best of all, she learned that we loved her and delighted in caring for her.  She learned to trust us.

Sometimes I act like my daughter did.  When life throws me a curve ball, I can often go from a whimper to an all out cry in less than a minute.  Fear and panic rise up in me, and I am overwhelmed.  I feel abandoned and all alone.  I begin to doubt that God will hear and answer my cry.  As fear escalates, my imagination goes crazy, my heart races, and I become more and more distraught.  Before long I can become hopeless -- an emotional and spiritual wreck.

Psalm 131:2-3 is God's word to me in times of fear and need.  "Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the LORD From this time forth and forever."

Psalm 46:10 echoes the sentiment:  "Be still and know that I am God."

In times of trouble, I must take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, make my need known to the Father, and be still.  I must rest in the fact that He loves me, He cares about my needs, and He is trustworthy.  I must choose not to listen to the voice of the enemy who causes my heart to fear.  I must choose instead to trust in the God who cared enough to die for me.
 "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?"  (Romans 8:32) 

Landing on an Aircraft Carrier

Photo courtesy U.S Department of Defense An F/A-18C Hornet catches an arresting wire on the USS Nimitz.

 

Landing on a flight deck is one of the most difficult things a navy pilot will ever do. The flight deck only has about 500 feet of runway space for landing planes. In order to land on the deck, the pilot must catch his plane’s tail hook on one of four arresting wires stretched across the deck of the carrier. If the pilot is successful and snags an arresting wire, it pulls the wire, stopping the plane. According to the website “How Stuff Works,” (http://science.howstuffworks.com/) the arresting wire system can stop a 54,000-pound aircraft travelling 150 miles per hour in only two seconds. 

There are two critical steps to the success of each landing. The first is that the pilot catches hold of the arresting wire with his plane’s tail hook. The second is that the arresting wire is strong enough to hold the plane and keep it from skidding off the runway, crashing into the sea. 

David said to the Lord in Psalm 140, “You are my God; Hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord. . . the strength of my salvation.” Like the pilot on the aircraft carrier snagged the wire, trusting it to save him, David reached out to the Lord in faith.

And like the super-strong arresting wire that keeps planes safe, God is strong enough to hold anyone who places his trust in Him. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we trust in the name of the LORD our God. (Ps 20:7)

 

Will you join me in “snagging the wire” as we trust our strong and mighty Savior?

Backward Giving

It was the only time I saw my daughter cry during our family mission trip to Mexico. Our assignment that day was to visit one of the poorest families in the church. Marta was a single mom and the sole provider for her mother and five children. They lived in a one-room cinderblock house the size of my kitchen and living room. Until a team from the states had built their home, all seven of them had lived in a one-room shack made of thick corrugated cardboard walls and a tin roof.

When we arrived, all five of the children met us by the side of the dirt road where they had been waiting for hours. They were neatly dressed in their Sunday clothes. Pati, the youngest child and only girl, had her shiny dark hair carefully braided and tied with two ribbons. After the introductions were made, each child shyly approached us with gifts. Pati presented her gift to my youngest daughter. She handed her a carefully washed piece of fruit neatly wrapped in a napkin.

Knowing that these children had very little to eat, my daughter looked at me with wide eyes. “Mom!” she whispered, “I can’t take this! What if it’s all they have?”

“Take it,” I encouraged her. “They care more about giving it to you than keeping it for themselves.” That night I held her as she cried. We all cried as we talked about how humbling it was to be the recipients of such sacrificial gifts

American Christians, myself included, approach giving like this, “If I have enough money left over after I pay my bills and meet my family’s needs, I will give.” Philippians 4:19 seems to support this. “And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” That is until you read the context. Earlier in the chapter, Paul talks about how the Philippian church had been the only church to sacrificially give to meet his needs. He called their gifts “fragrant offering(s), acceptable sacrifice(s), and pleasing to God.”

It is only AFTER Paul commends them for their sacrificial giving does he issue the promise: “AND (because you have given to me FIRST), my God will meet all your needs.” We American Christians have it backward. The reason God gives to us is not so every need of ours will be satisfied, but so we can give to others. The late Pastor E.V. Hill, speaking to the congregation of the Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Watts, Los Angeles, put it this way, “When GAAWD blesses you, he don’t even have you in mind!”

Will you join me in trusting God enough to give sacrificially?