Prayer: What Are You Willing to Ask God For? (Part 1)

Hello all! I hope that God has really been speaking to all of you and blessing you these past couple weeks. I would like to talk about something that God has really been speaking to me lately through my Pastor, Pastor Patrick Johnson at The Way Impact Christian Center in Denton, Tx. and just by spending personal time with God in His word.

First I'd like to show where our prayers go after they are prayed. "And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God's people"(Revelation 5:8 NIV).

" Imagine, then, on this altar are piles of prayers. Centuries of prayers. Your prayers and mine. They are as fire, burning, their smoke rising up from the altar before God. Then the angel takes his bowl to this blazing altar and he rakes in all these flames. Then, holding this bowl of fire — of our prayers — he steps over and hurls it onto the earth". - Jonathan Parnell 

 All the prayers of God's people are not only heard by God but answered by God. We can have confidence that He hears our prayers and answers them. "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you" (John 15:7). 

To understand what this verse really means we must understand the text in the original language. The word "thelo" is often translated by theologians as "desires" or "wishes" it is used in the verse when Jesus says ask whatever you "wish". However a better translation for the word is "willing". So Jesus is telling us to ask whatever we're willing to ask for, He is in fact daring us to ask beyond our wants. What we want has limitations but what God can do has no boundaries.

So what are you willing to ask God for?

(to be continued)