"Ask And You Shall Receive"

John 16:24 “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.”

This past month I have been getting up at night with a horrible feeling of a presence of evil. When I first became a believer it scared me but know I know how to fight it. Even though we are struggling in the financial area of our ministry the Lord has allowed our ministry to bear fruit. The new book is almost finished and people are being added to the devotional daily. This evil is dark and suppressing. It can make my heart race IF I don’t call out in the name of Jesus. Once I say “In the name of Jesus leave my presence” the feeling subsides. But sometimes if the feeling is so overwhelming I can feel confused as though the attacker does not want me to gather my thoughts. Once the name of Jesus is called everything calms down.

A lot of times when we read this verse we can think “Does this mean everything I ask for”? If you are asking for non selfish gains and to help further the kingdom of God, the Lord will give and give abundantly. Once person can ask for one thing and it may be selfish but another can ask for the same thing and it is not. One person may ask for the Lord to provide them a home. That sounds like a good request. But what if the person already has 2 homes and they want a home in the mountains? I am not saying God won’t honor that request but Jesus says that when you ask “Your joy will be complete”. If you ask for something and you get it and it does not bring you joy then you know what the will of God was for that answer.

I felt the Lord prompting me to put up on Facebook a couple days ago the message

“Challenge - We only have today - Pray right now for the Lord to put you in front of someone that needs an encouraging word from the Lord or a helping hand. Then post back how the Lord has answered your prayers today.”

Within 2 minutes this came in from someone

“Don’t have kind words n me today just anger n loneliness”

Someone wrote in and said that they were praying for her and then this woman wrote back in a few minutes later and just said that she had just gotten a job 5 minutes ago!!!!!

Maybe right now you are too tired to ask for help but God still knows. Yesterday morning I had an MRI done on my neck. I had joked that every time I go the hospital I get to share with someone that the Lord puts in front of me. I got to where I was to sign in and get my wristband at 6:30am. Within 30 seconds this woman mentioned the Lord to someone else. For the next 30 minutes we talked till my time for my test. She has a daughter that is 1 in 400 in the country with an illness that requires constant treatment. Her husband just passed away and her mother just had triple by pass and is living with her. Now she is on our devotional this morning. Maybe the only reason I had my MRI was to get her on the list and for all of us to encourage her through prayer. Her name is Shawn. Welcome Shawn to our group.

So today you may want many things but what is it you want that God also wants for your life? Ahhhhh that’s the million dollar question of life. How do we know the will of God?

John 7:17,18 “If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.”

This life is not about fulfilling our own desires but the desires of the Lord. When we can do that on a daily basis and think of others more than ourselves then and only then will our joy become complete. PLEASE try to encourage someone today. If you are the one who needs encouraged please e mail or call me. We would love to pray for you. Jesus is King, Amen!

Brad