Scripture Scribbles: July 24, 2022
the Gospel
Luke 11:1-14
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples."
He said to them, "When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test."
And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend
to whom he goes at midnight and says,
'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,
for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey
and I have nothing to offer him,'
and he says in reply from within,
'Do not bother me; the door has already been locked
and my children and I are already in bed.
I cannot get up to give you anything.'
I tell you,
if he does not get up to give the visitor the loaves
because of their friendship,
he will get up to give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.
"And I tell you, ask and you will receive;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives;
and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
What father among you would hand his son a snake
when he asks for a fish?
Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will the Father in heaven
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?"
the devotion
For everyone who asks, receives;
and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
As I sit here praying with these verses, I feel the Holy Spirit prompt me to pay attention to the word ask.
What does it really mean to ask someone for something?
To ask, it requires a certain level of vulnerability and humility. In asking, you are admitting that you are seeking, that you are in need, that you desire one’s help.
To ask, it also requires a certain level of trust. You are putting trust in the person in which you are asking. For example, you wouldn’t ask someone you barely know to handle a huge favor of yours.
You wouldn’t ask someone something unless part of you knew and trusted that the person you are asking would be willing to help, and would be willing to help in a quality way.
Today, Jesus tells us that we should ask.
That we should seek.
That we should knock.
And it is prompted from the disciples asking Him to teach them how to pray. What a beautiful, vulnerable request to ask of the Lord! Lord, teach us how to pray.
Jesus responds by revealing the heart of the Father to us.
He tells us that we should not hesitate to come to the Father with all of our needs. To ask, seek, and knock, because the heart of the Father will answer, he will show us, he will open the door. He loves us more than we can even comprehend.
The question is: Do we trust Him enough to ask?
Will we allow ourselves to be vulnerable enough to ask? Will we humble ourselves enough to realize that without Him “we can do nothing” (John 15:5)?
What is it in your life right now that you need to bring to the heart of the Father?
Today, I invite you to spend some time asking, seeking, knocking on the door of the heart of the Father. Ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you in a deeper way. Understand that trust is built overtime and in relationship. It does not happen overnight. Be patient with yourself and with Him. Take just one step closer today by asking a simple question of Him, exactly where you are at.
Trust that in time, He will reveal the answer to you.
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will the Father in heaven
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?
Today’s devotion was written by Rachel Smith
