Do you ever hear that from the Father? I think when we have a request, we think of the Canaanite woman who asked Jesus to heal her daughter (Matthew 15) who was first told to go away and then granted her request because of her faith and persistence. We get in our mind that if we really, really, really want something, we should keep asking, and our persistence will make God grant our request.
Imagine my surprise, then, when I was cleaving to persistence about staying at my current job, and while I was again, asking God to bless the day, he responded with, "Lisa, I want you to stop asking me to bless what you're bent on doing, and start asking me to bless what I told you to do." WHOA!!! Now that turns into a whole new set of questions, but it was clear his message was, "No. Now stop asking." It wasn't until I re-vamped my resume and actually sent it out that He gave me peace, and spoke to my heart that everything was going to be ok.
I'm not saying persistence doesn't have it's place. The story of the Canaanite woman shows that if you haven’t gotten your answer yet, by all means, keep asking, but the rest of scripture seems to suggest that when God gives you an answer, even if it’s an answer you don’t necessarily like or want, believe that He has revealed His will on the subject and accept it. A great example of this is Paul, in 2nd Corinthians 12, who was given something he called a thorn in his flesh and a messenger of Satan to torment him. He said 3 times, he asked God to take it from him, and all the Father said was, “My grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in weakness.” Paul still didn't want this thorn, this tormentor, but instead of continuing to ask, he accepted that God's goodness and power was going to be perfected in the midst of his situation.
For me, it comes down to two things: Do I believe the Father is good and has my best in mind and do I believe He is capable in either filling in the cracks or making good on His promises? James says, “If any of you lack wisdom he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double minded man, unstable in all he does.” (James 1:5-8)
To ask for His wisdom and doubt His answer is as good as not asking, and the Spirit isn’t interested in volleying “are you sure”s. This is not to say don’t ask for confirmation, as John tells us to test what we believe to be the Holy Spirit. However, there is difference in asking if we heard correctly and doubting we heard at all, especially if we don’t like the answer. It might sound harsh, but much like our children questioning our intentions, understanding, and reliability is met with disengagement on our part, the Father disengages with doubt. The writer of Hebrews sums this up by saying, "Without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe he exists, and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Heb 11:6)
Abba, thank You for being generous with your wisdom. Reveal in my heart those things you want to water and grow and bring to fruition, and give me the grace to walk away from the things you've told me to stop asking about. I pray that you give me faith to receive when you reveal Your will in my life, and cling to the knowledge that Your thoughts and ways are higher than mine. I trust you, Father. In Jesus name.
