Naming it Doesn’t Mean Claiming It

The Bible tells us in Philippians 4:19, “And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.”  John 15:7 says, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you[a] will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

There are verses throughout the Bible that speak of the Lord’s willingness to provide for us. As a result many believe they can treat God like He’s a genie. Many believe they can “claim” anything in the name of Jesus and “poof” they get it. When we pray we tend to jump right to what God can do for us. Instead of thanking God for current provisions or praising God for how great He is we go right into, “God would You, could You, do you mind?”  Even in prayer, some quote verses or parts of verses in an attempt to convince God to give them what they want but forget the parts that say,  “according to His will,” “delight yourself in the Lord,” or “if you remain in Me.”

Instead, it is believed, if we say, “Lord give me a big house in Your name I pray,” God is obligated to give what is asked. This way of thinking takes away the infinite power of God and demotes Him to something like a genie. We should know that we can’t rub the proverbial lamp and “poof” God appears asking, “What do you need?”  We should know that although the Lord can and does provide for us even when we don’t deserve it (Grace) He does so according to His will. God will always do and allow what is best for us (Romans 8:28). He blesses as He sees fit. However, we must remember that blessings don’t bring about hardships (Proverbs 10:22). Therefore, if the big house and the nice car cause you to spend less time doing God’s work to maintain it, it wasn’t from God. The Lord will not “bless” us with anything that will cause us to sin to keep it or cause us to move away from Him.  Understanding that God is not a genie and that God only operates according to what lines up with His Word will better help us accept how and what He provides for us. The genie grants wishes but doesn’t care about what is needed for growth and subjecting God to such a status is disrespectful.

PRAYER: Lord, forgive us for treating You like a genie. Forgive us for wanting the desires of our heart but not desiring to do Your will. Lord, forgive us for complaining after You have rescued us because You gave us what we needed, but it wasn’t what we wanted. Remind us Lord, that our ways are not Your ways and that You not only know what’s best for us, but do what’s best for us. Thank You for providing for us even when we neglect You. Thank You for supplying our needs and wants. Thank You, Lord, for Your grace and mercy, without it we would be lost. And thank You, for giving us Your Son, Jesus Christ, who died and rose so we can live. In the matchless name of Jesus, Amen.
By Sis. Patricia Towns