Does God care about me? I find that most Christians believe that God loves them, and that He can do miracles….but our belief in a big God kinda ends with big things. If someone asks if God will answer prayers we say a conditional yes…it means that there are things that are too small that He can’t be bothered. Or more importantly, He shouldn’t be bothered.
The truth is…God shouldn’t be bothered with football games, tests, weather, family relations, lost toys and items, food and supplies, friendships, travel plans…. The list could (and does) go on.
But are these thoughts Biblical? In the 4th chapter of Phillipians verse 6 it says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” And there are just countless of stories. One of the most well-known prophets in the Old Testament, Elijah, prayed for no rain (1 Kings 17-18). Elisha brought a lost ax-head up from the water (2 Kings 6:1-7) For Joshua the sun stood still for close to 24 hours so that their army could defeat the armies of five kings (Joshua 10:1-14). Jesus, Himself, prayed for food to provide for the 5000 plus people who were listening to Him preach and he fed the whole crowd with 5 loaves and 2 fish (Luke 9:12-17). There is a story of a woman named Ellen traveling by train with her husband in the 1800s who continued to feel impressed to change rail cars until she finally settled down; the train was in a horrible wreck and all the cars prior to the one she felt comfortable in were badly damaged/destroyed. I personally was traveling for an important trip and the delays were trip-ending; a woman looked at the tearful me and rerouted the whole trip so that I made it to the interview where I would eventually meet my husband. I recently heard a story of an individual who lost a wallet in the mountains; this man’s God-fearing mother talked with a local outfitter, telling him that God was going to lead him to her son’s wallet in the woods. The outfitter’s boot happened to come untied and, finally tired of walking with a loose boot, he knelt down to tie it, and between his knee and the ground was the lost wallet. Though fictional, the movie Facing the Giants talks about a team that perseveres in the faith of God to win a hopeless season.
Do I think we can pray God to do whatever we wish? I hope we all know that answer. That’s not God, that’s Santa Claus. Let’s read the whole section of Phillipians 4:4-7, including the previously stated verse 6. “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” It says we are to pray about everything. It doesn’t promise we’ll get everything we want. But God will provide us peace. I’ve done poorly on my share of tests…ones which have mattered so much, in my thinking…but God has proven His plan for my life, has certainly given me peace in the end.
Two more verses.
“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 what is good to those who ask Him!”
Matthew 7:11
“Whatever you ask in My [Jesus] name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”
John 14:13
No, God is not Santa Claus. But He loves us infinitely more and loves to work towards our good, and make us smile…as a loving parent. “Our Father, who art in Heaven….
