Jesus commands us: "Ask, and you will receive" (Mt 7:7). However, the Lord tells us: "You do not obtain because you do not ask. You ask and you do not receive because you ask wrongly, with a view to squandering what you receive on your pleasures" (Jas 4:2-3). Often the Lord must say to us: "You do not know what you are asking" (Mk 10:38). We must ask the Lord for His grace, blessings, forgiveness, and mercy, but we must not ask in ignorance or selfishness.
If we base our prayers on the Bible, we will be more likely to ask in the right way. For instance, the writer of Sirach can teach us to ask God for help. In just a few verses, he prays:
We ask for all these things not to get what we want but that "it will be known to the very ends of the earth" that Yahweh is "the eternal God" (Sir 36:17). Ask from the Bible and for the Lord.
| PRAYER: | Father, send the Holy Spirit to teach me about asking. |
| PROMISE: | "The Son of Man has not come to be served but to serve – to give His life in ransom for the many." –Mk 10:45 |
| PRAISE: | Jesus healed Kim of breast cancer. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College