SOLEMN REQUEST - PART 3

WEDNESDAY 31 JANUARY 2024

The real evidence of our confidence in the Lord is our solemn request. It is our interest by faith in the impeccable nature of the Almighty's performance, whose ability does not fail. More below!

Reference: 1st John 5:14-15 New International Version (NIV)

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

The next segment to be expounded by my humble self - in the versified reference is:

That if we ask anything according to His will.

Cultivating the willingness to ask anything from God is priceless. Moreover, when you reflect on the stated segment above, you'll observe that Johannine literature made sure that we are not ignorant of what God can do. Notice the rendering, "That if we ask anything according to His will." If you've caught the core significance, you can never pretend to be ignorant of the size of what God can do, nor try to limit Him in your prayer requests.

"Anything" suggests that what God "cannot" do, is out of existence. Therefore, you must develop a great deal of the consciousness of "God can do all things", and indeed, there is no partial truth in the statement. God's ability in any functionality is perpetuated in the realm of "All things are possible" and it epitomizes His Supreme power and authority both in heaven and on earth.

As a born again Christian, you must be aware of this truth in every department of your mental processes: In your memory, perception, emotion, imagination, thought pattern and reasoning. Deliberately nurture the vast deal of His limitless ability in the "consciousness" of your mental faculty. This is because Johannine literature has revealed in our referenced Scripture that we have been destined, chosen and empowered to believe God for anything, and therefore, in any section or unit of your mind and spirit, you must sustain the fixed awareness that He could perform the needful for you, in accordance with His good, pleasing and perfect will.

Now that we are certain that we can ask anything, what does John mean by adding, "according to His will"? I will simply instantiate this by stating Mary's response in Luke 1:37-38. The two verses revealed: "For the word of God will never fail. And Mary said, "Behold, the Lord's bond-servant; may it be done to me according to your word..." (NASB). We are to keep whatever we have requested, in line with God's Word. In a nutshell, to keep your prayer life sweet and beautiful, let your solemn requests be written in accordance with the Holy Scripture.

God always wants to invest His goodness in our lives by any increase in capacity, as long as we can imagine or contain it. To that effect, He made provision for everything we would ever need or ask for - within the scope of His Word. This is the reason we are continually encouraged to search the Scriptures and cogitate on them with ardent alacrity. That way, we get to know, assimilate or understand His perfect will concerning any request we present before Him.

One truth about the responsibility of our co-operation with the will of God in our prayer life is this:

It ensures the accomplishment of divine results and outcomes.

Question: Have you yielded yourselves to the ministry of the Word?

Let me venture to remind you that you can always pray effectively when you've made a conscious decision to let the Word permeate or move round your heart and settle there, thereby influencing your desires. Stay tuned for part 4. Shalom!

Scripture Reading - Isaiah 26:3-4; Psalm 37:5; Proverbs 3:5-6; Mark 9:23.

Guided Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I thank you for revealing the nature of your divinity in me. You are full of perpetuity and your eternality reveals the augury of the weight of glory in Christ. You hold infinity in the very palms of your hand and you have set eternity in my heart. For this reason, I'm confident of this very thing: That if I ask anything according to your will, it is a branch of discipline that pleases your auditory perception and honours my solemn request. I, therefore, continually acknowledge your grace on which I depend - with regard to keeping my faith alive in the realm of prayer, in Jesus' Name, Amen.