Jesus spoke in Matthew chapter 7:
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?
11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”
In the above passage, Jesus provides us with a simple and direct understanding in what it takes to receive a promise from FATHER. Within this passage we also find the Golden Rule- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
In order to properly ask FATHER for anything, we must first have the knowledge of what FATHER’S Will is in the area of our perceived need. HE will always answer us according to HIS Word thus we need knowledge of HIS Word in the area of our request. We know unequivocally that it is HIS Will to heal us so we should not hesitate to pray for healing and restoration.
One of the aspects of prayer is in essence seeking or petitioning FATHER for help in meeting a need. FATHER is not reluctant to do HIS Will in our lives so we should not be reluctant to pray for one of HIS redemptive blessings. If I need resources in an area of my life, FATHER is not reluctant to provide them. FATHER is never too busy to listen and respond to our requests.
Once we have prayed according to HIS Will, we should expect HIS Word to come to pass and act on It. When FATHER gave me HIS Word that I would live and not die on three different occasions when I faced death, I acted on HIS Word and expected to be made whole. I disregarded the symptoms and associated pain and continued on with whatever daily duties I could perform, knowing HIS Word was acting in my body on my behalf. As we respond to HIS Word by acting on It, our faith is empowered and the results manifest in the natural, lower realm. In Luke chapter 17, Jesus was sought out by ten lepers:
11 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.
12 Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off.
13 And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
14 So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.
They sought out Jesus and asked Him to have mercy on them, obviously for healing. He responded and told them to “Go”, thus He expected them to act in response to His willingness to heal. As they acted, they were healed.
Knowledge, prayer, and action are the three aspects of receiving from FATHER. Let us not ask amiss, but seek out FATHER’S Will when our needs arise for HE Loves us and wants to give us those good things when we ask.