Why doesn’t God give us everything we ask for?

Have you ever asked God for a million dollars? How about a new car or a different job? I have. Did you get it? I didn’t either at least not all of it or in my timing. Or maybe you’ve asked Him for something much less extravagant, but still haven’t received it.

Maybe it was because you weren’t praying this super-secret prayer that will insure God gives you everything you could ever ask for.

….

Yeah, that prayer doesn’t exist. Sorry.

The truth is God doesn’t just give us whatever we want.

It can be frustrating. I gave the example of asking for a million dollars before, and we may hear that and roll our eyes. Of course, God’s not going to just give you a million dollars, but my prayer is for something truly good, truly needed.

The apostle Paul would understand. In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul writes that he had a “thorn in his side.” He doesn’t go into detail about what that thorn was, but he does say that he asked God 3 times to remove it and God refused. God told Paul His (God’s) grace was sufficient.

In Matthew, Jesus asked whether parents would give their kids a stone when they asked for bread or a snake when they asked for fish. Of course not! He followed that to say that God, our Father, knows how to give good gifts, too, when we ask. However, as Paul discovered, God’s good gifts aren’t always what we ask for or what we want.

That’s because what we ask for isn’t always good or at least it isn’t always best.

God knows what is best for us and that is what He gives us. Sometimes a million dollars would hurt us in the long run or draw us away from Him. Sometimes we need to stay in at a job we don’t really like so we can minister to someone there or learn patience or maybe it’s not about us but about how it will affect someone else in the future… Who knows? Well…God does. And that’s why He gives the gifts that are truly good.

I think it’s the prayers where what we are asking for seems to just be good or needed where we struggle with this the most. Maybe it’s a prayer for healing or the prayer for peace in a relationship or something like that. These are genuinely good things, but God says, “No.” or “Not yet.”

Even with these prayers we must trust that God has a better plan. It’s not necessarily that our plan or request is bad, it’s that God’s plan is better. Ultimately, we trust that God’s grace is sufficient. In other words, even giving something different from what we ask or saying no, is a good gift.

So, when we pray, let’s ask for God’s good gifts, knowing that He is our loving Father. We can certainly ask for what we thing would be good, Jesus also said you have not because you ask not, but let us always follow those requests saying that this is what we think would be good, but we trust our Heavenly Father to provide what is best.

Let us pray…

Heavenly Father,

You are the giver of all good gifts. Thank You for taking care of me. Thank You for listening to me. Help me to bring all things to you, to ask for what I think I need and would be good, but also to trust Your goodness, even when Your answer to my prayer is, “No.”

Amen.

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.