John 16:23-24 (NLT)
“23 At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. 24 You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.”
After the Christmas holidays were over, Sharon and Jason called it quits. Sharon consulted with her spiritual counselor who walks in wisdom regarding God’s Word. She wanted to know if she could’ve taken any actions to prevent the relationship from falling apart. Her counselor told her, “Whether he’s in your life or not, no matter what happens, you must trust God.” This was not the answer Sharon was looking to hear. She was prepared to go to spiritual battle to get Jason back, and the wisdom she had heard from this wise spiritual veteran didn’t convey the fight and urgency she felt her situation warranted.
They had been together almost two years, and Sharon believed they were headed for marriage. When Jason told her that he wanted to take things slow without the pressure of marriage, it was her first inkling that he wasn’t as devoted as she initially believed. Ultimately, he walked away, and Sharon knew that he didn’t love her the way she had always wanted to be loved. She tried to accept it, but when the thought of being without Jason set in, having him back was the only way she knew to ease her pain.
God doesn’t want any of His children to go through heartbreak. It can be devastating and once we spend a little time feeling the sting of it, we often sense an urgency to do whatever we can to make the pain go away. However, pining away over a man that doesn’t want to be committed isn’t the answer. Having faith in God is the right answer, and it will forever be the right answer.
Psalm 146:3(NIV) says, “Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.” The wisdom of this verse isn’t telling us that we can’t ever trust people. It’s conveying the judgment and discernment we must demonstrate when it comes to understanding His omnipotence and omniscience compared to that of human beings. None of us possess the ability to give eternal life to another individual. We can’t save their souls or extend their years upon this earth. Only God has this power. Psalm 75:6-7(NIV) tells us, “6 No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt themselves. 7 It is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another.” If we get this twisted in a relationship, and we begin to think a man has the ability to take away our pain or give us more joy than what God has provided through Jesus Christ, we are dabbling in idolatry, and that is exceedingly dangerous territory.
When we’re faced with heartbreak like Sharon is experiencing with Jason, of course we go to God, and we should. Psalm 147:3(NIV) tells us, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” If we trust Him with our brokenness, He will help us grow in wisdom and endurance so that we do not continually choose men that will hurt and leave us, but this is not what many of us want. We want the man that wounded us, even though he has not treated or loved us the way God wants us to be loved. It’s in this state of denial that some of us will ask the Father if He will bring the man back to us.
As mature women, we have to know that if we ask our Great Big Wonderful God a question, He is going to answer us. Either through a spiritual counselor that is wise in His Word or through the voice of His Spirit, we will receive a Word that cuts through all the pain and administers truth. This is what Sharon received. It’s never about the man. It’s always about our level of faith and trust in God. It’s about how we’ve prioritized our relationship with Him during the times we were in a relationship with a man and without one.
Our precious Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, told us John 16:23-24 that we can ask anything in his name, and the Father will do it. This is God’s promise, but if we ask for a prayer to be answered in the name of Jesus Christ, it means that we’ve asked for a request that is according to God’s Will. Not our will, but God’s Will. We don’t get to tell God that we know what man is right for our lives. He tells us, and when we ask Him, we shouldn’t look for His answer to always be what we want to hear. We must be ready to hear that our commitment to Him must grow stronger, that we must have greater faith, and we need to be patient and surrender our will for His. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Be Ready for God’s Answer”, written by Kim Times, edited by Fran Mack and KLizzie for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2024. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.