Praying with Confidence

Sometimes God's word doesn't seem to match up with my experiences and reality. At first glance, 1 John 5:14-15 appears to be one of those passages...

"¹⁴This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him."

It's easy for us to skim through verse 14 and jump to the promise of verse 15 - he hears us and we have what we asked of him, but not so fast. If you're anything like me, that's not always a reality. I don't get everything I pray for, do you? So, let's dig a little deeper into this passage.

First of all, I love the fact that we can have confidence in approaching God. That could not be possible if He had not loved us enough to send Jesus to bear our sins on the cross in order to open the door for a right relationship with Himself. (Thank you, God!) So, confidently I go into prayer, confident that he hears my prayers - that they do not bounce off the ceiling or fall on deaf ears, but are carefully monitored by him. I am praying heart-to-heart.

The hard part of verse 14 is praying according to his will, for we don't know how to pray as we ought (Romans 8:26).  Fortunately, God has given us His Spirit, who helps us to pray and intercedes for us as we pray. It is the Holy Spirit who knows God's will - knows God's thoughts (1 Corinthians 2:10-16). As we pray, we need to ask the Holy Spirit to help us pray according to God's will and He will do so.

Still, we are human and our own desires creep into our prayers, so in the end, after we have prayed  and shared our cares and requests with God, we need to acquiesce to His will in the matter, just as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:39-42) when He closed His own prayer to be released from the cross with, "Nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done." (Luke 22:42)  In doing this, we recognize and submit ourselves to the sovereignty of God.

So, pray with confidence, let your requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6), then end your prayer by submitting to God's will over your own, because His will is perfect (Romans 12:2). After that, you can relax and let Him handle the situation. Receive His promise to fill you with His peace, which transcends all understanding and will guard your heart and mind (Philippians 4:7). I am assuming that means guarding your heart and mind against worry and anxiety, as mentioned in Philippians 4:6.

You prayed.
You put it in God's hands.
God's got it.
He will do what is best.
Rest in Him.

...and that's how you pray with CONFIDENCE!


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How to Develop Intimacy with God

Exodus 33 records an amazing conversation between Moses and God...

12 Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’ 13 If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”

14 The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”

17 And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked,because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”

18 Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”

19 And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.

Were you as astonished as I was at the boldness of Moses when speaking to the Lord? 

Where did this confidence come from? I believe the answer is found in verse 12 when God said...

"I know you by name and you have found favor with me."

Moses and God had an intimate relationship. That kind of relationship can only be developed after spending much time together, after displaying devotion and obedience to God, after walking with Him daily in a way that honors Him.

 Do you wish that you had that kind of relationship with God? I know I do and I'm willing to put in the time, live my life to the best of ability to please Him, cultivate intimacy with Him and listen hard for His directions for me.

There is no better pursuit that we can have then an intimate friendship with our Creator.

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Photo by Daniel Reche via Pixabay