Ask

Prayer is like a pizza someone said. There’s many different slices to eat. There’s worship, praise, prophecy, declarations, supplications, intercession, listening prayer, waiting, confession, singing, shouting, whispering, silence, thanksgiving, and more. There’s so much to prayer!

Now, I’ve heard sermons on, “Prayer isn’t just giving a wish list to God.” So naturally I was leaning toward worship, listening, confession, thanksgiving and other types of prayer. Not so much asking for specific things. I thought that God liked thanksgiving and worship prayer better than asking. I felt it was rude to always come to God with a request and no other prayer.

Lately God has been teaching me about asking prayer. There are five “asking prayer” verses that Jesus spoke in John 14,15 and 16 in his last discourse to his disciples before death. I felt that I was being encouraged to “ask” God for things.

Another asking verse in John 15:7 says:  If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire and it shall be done for you. So when I’m in asking prayer mode, I need to use God’s words, Jesus’ words. That would be the Bible. I can ask Bible verses and prayers from the Bible. I would think this also means prophetic words that were given to me. I can ask for them. This would mean words of knowledge or words of wisdom from dreams—I ask for them. This would mean words that Holy Spirit whispered to me—I ask for those things for me and others.

But then I saw John 16:24b:  Ask and you will receive that your joy may be full. I like joy! What does it mean that my joy would be full? I looked up that ‘full’ word and it is a verb—an action word. It means my joy will be filled up to overflowing and bubbling up inside me! Very cool!  When do I get this very active joy filling me up?  I get it when the answer to my asking prayer comes!  That makes me excited!

Yes, joy activates prayer and prayer activates joy. And it all begins at the Feet of Jesus, with me asking. 

John 15:16 says: …your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.

So that tells me that my ‘fruit’ in life, (good things that glorify God), that is going to remain after I’ve gone to heaven, is from my prayers!  I ask, He answers, I get joy, and I get good things that remain on earth to change the world. My fruit is from my prayers and it will remain. This is really changing my outlook on asking prayer.

I think of a child. I think of my kids when they were little. Did they come to me thanking me for being their parent or honor and value me? No, they just came asking. When I gave them what they asked for, then their hearts became appreciative and sometimes they said something like, “You’re the best!” Answered prayer activates joy and joy activates thanksgiving and worship!

Just be a kid and ASK!!  Let joy do its work!