The Willingness of God
Good morning, Immanuel. God is far more willing to answer our prayers than we are to offer them.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him” (James 1:5).
James assumes that we will need wisdom. He counsels us to ask God for it. We are supposed to feel like we need his help. It is healthy at these times to realize how much we don’t know. We’re not letting anyone down. In fact, as is so often the case with prayer, we find that God is far more willing to answer our prayers than we are to offer them.
The key to asking God is knowing God. So savor the way in which God gives wisdom to those who ask him for it:
He gives generously. God is not tight-fisted with his wisdom. I was at a buffet some time ago where the servers were giving out what seemed quite measly portions of food, given what they were charging for it. A small pile of rice with a sneeze of curry to go with it. No small number of people complained. But God is not stingy like that with his wisdom, giving only a tiny morsel to each person who asks. No, he is wonderfully generous. We need to take care it doesn’t slop over the side of the tray.
He gives to all. God’s wisdom is not restricted to only a few privileged Christians. God intends it to be enjoyed and used by all his people. The Christian life is not like one of those airline membership schemes where there are different tiers, and only the Platinum Members enjoy the good stuff while the rest of us are left to flounder. If you belong to God, his wisdom is for you.
He gives without finding fault. As we come to our Father asking for wisdom in the middle of great turmoil, he is not shaking his head saying, “Man, you really screwed all that up…” He is not tut-tutting as he guides and leads us.
This is the God we discovered when we first came to Christ. He loves his children. He longs to help us. He is utterly sincere in his desire to give us wisdom.
CHURCH-WIDE TENTH GENERATION GATHERING - Our Tenth Generation campaign is still underway (learn more here). We invite you to come out on Wednesday, November 8th at 6:30 pm to Immanuel for a church-wide Tenth Generation Gathering, where we will share important updates on our campaign thus far. We look forward to seeing you there!
This is great news, and lands freshly on me today.