7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. ” (Matthew 7:7-8)

There are a lot of passages in Scripture that focus on how important it is for Christians to pray persistently. Everyday this world places demands on us with the expectation that we will deliver immediately. Sometimes when we pray to God we expect Him to be on our timetable. We ask God and then expect Him to have a “same day” delivery policy. It is like we expect by playing the flute of prayer God will break into a dance for us (Matthew 11:17)! God hears every prayer immediately but in His sovereignty chooses to answer based on His own timetable. Since a thousand years is like a day to God, then waiting a month or year is really not that long to wait based on His time frame.

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That being said, Christians need to be patient and persistent and keep on asking, seeking and knocking on the door! 1 Thessalonians 5:16 states that we are to pray without ceasing. I believe prayer should be as natural to us as it is to breath, walk or speak! Often we do not ask God because of fear that He will remain silent and not give us an answer. Silence is very difficult for us “busy” people to accept! Divine delays do not necessarily mean God has said no. In waiting we learn patience and our faith is often increased when we keep on asking until we hear an answer.

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Just because we ask though does not mean we will receive a YES. God will give us His answer not ours. The next verse in this passage says that God only gives good gifts to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:11). So if you ask for a million dollars but God knows that a large sum of money would corrupt you, do you think He will give it to you? If you ask to be removed from a trial but that would mean you would not get a chance for your faith to grow, do you think He will remove you from the trial? If you ask God to open the door of ministry where He has not given you the spiritual gifts needed for this area, do you think He will open that door for you? The answer of course is NO, He will not. But just because one hears NO once in a while does not mean one should stop asking … it just means one must learn to ask better questions!

Blessed are those who thirst after righteousness for they are satisfied (Matthew 5:6).

About the Author

Rev. Derek Geldart: "I am a Christian and I love God and all the people that God has blessed me to meet with all my heart, mind and soul. I have a Masters in theology at Acadia Divinity but am still learning more about God every day!"