What To Do When You Don’t Get What You Want

 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” - Matthew 7:7-11

This is perhaps one of the most abused or misused verses in the Bible. If I want it then God will give it to me.  If He doesn’t, I will be upset with God because I have decided I need what I asked for.  Actually there are a few reasons that I see that might affect God’s answer to your prayer.

First.  You have failed to examine your heart.  You have some un-confessed sin tucked away in the corner of your heart.  You have decided that the sin doesn’t matter.  That you can stand before a holy God even though you have quenched the Spirit with the sin that you are embracing.  Yes, you are a child of God.  Washed in the blood.  But you need to clear the air … approach God with clean hands and a clean heart. (Psalm 24:3-5) “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.” 

Second. In God’s wisdom, there is a better answer to your prayer than the one that you have decided is the best one.  This is a test of submission to the will of the Father.  Are you really committed to seeking His will or is it only when His will agrees with yours? 

Third.  As the King James Version says “You ask amiss”.  Is it your flesh, your old nature, that you are seeking to satisfy?

"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions." - James 4:1-3

If everything in your life is for God’s glory, why are His answers not good enough when you don’t get what you asked for? If God’s will for you is for your good and His glory, then the test is, can you trust God even when He is silent.  Even when you don't get what you asked for.  God is not here to serve us.  It is quite the opposite.  Since COIVD grocery stores have started delivering what they sell to homes.  You nearly don’t have to leave the house.  But God does not take delivery orders.  It is so very important that we have the right view toward God.  God does not want to “friend you” on Facebook!  He is not your buddy.  He is the creator God who sacrificed His Son that you might be adopted and eternally blessed – for His glory and for your good.  We all should keep that in mind when we approach Him in prayer. 

"Then he [Jesus] said to them, 'My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.' And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, 'My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.'" - Matthew 26:38-39

It is not necessarily wrong to ask, it is just that we need to be willing to trust God and accept His will as being right and best. Your ability to do that is an indication of the strength of your faith and love for God.

Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone