By David ReayWednesday 4 Apr 2018LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 2 minutes
Read Psalm 21:1-4
1 How the king rejoices in your strength, O Lord!
He shouts with joy because you give him victory.
2 For you have given him his heart’s desire;
you have withheld nothing he requested.
3 You welcomed him back with success and prosperity.
You placed a crown of finest gold on his head.
4 He asked you to preserve his life,
and you granted his request.
The days of his life stretch on forever. (NLT)
One of the great puzzles of the Bible is that it repeatedly tells us that we get what we ask for in prayer. The puzzle being that it doesn’t always happen that way. So can’t the Bible be trusted? Is there a ‘catch’ or at least an unspoken condition? What do we make of texts like this which seem to suggest that if we do the right thing by God we can be granted prosperity, success, and long life. Our wishes come true.
No easy answer to that. How many Christians have prayed for the safe delivery of a healthy child and been faced with a stillborn or a severe disability? How many have prayed for a safe journey only to be wiped out by a drunk driver on the same road? How many have prayed the cancer not recur and it comes back with a vengeance? Perhaps we can argue that these are in the minority, but they still call into question those bold biblical statements about desires being granted.
This one Christian can only grapple with the puzzle by not trying to find an answer, not trying to figure God out. Merely to helplessly trust him. He knows what he is doing even if I do not. Perhaps all our prayers are made in the context of God allowing both good and not-so-good things to happen. The bold texts tell us what it can be like rather than what is always like. Above all, I see prayer not primarily as a means of getting something from God but rather pouring out my heart to God and seeking alignment with his purposes.
One thing we can be sure of: if we reckon we have a simple answer to all this, we have most likely got the wrong answer!
Blessings
David Reay