PHOTO: NASA, ESA and the HUBBLE HERITAGE TEAM Cosmic Question Mark
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you
Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf of bread, or a snake when he asks for a fish? If you the, who are wicked, know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask?
Mt 7, 7; 9-11
Tonight I joined my parish for a soup supper and shared thoughts on Lectio Divina with them. As I talked about finding a word in Scripture, a passage that moves the prayers heart in some way, I warned that not all words given in Lectio warm the heart. Some words will be challenging. Some make you uncomfortable, even angry. Some are mysterious and confusing.
Todays reading from Matthew falls into that last category for me. How many times have we knocked and been left outside, alone? many times have we asked and not received? How many times have we sought something and came up empty handed? Plenty, I would guess.
Jesus compares his Father to human parents, saying if we know to give our children good things when they ask for them, how much more does God know to give good to us. That sounds true.
But does it imply that when we pray for something and our prayer is not answered as we hope, that we were asking for something that was not good?
What could be bad about praying for physical recovery from illness or accident? What would be evil about healing a child, finding a job, or release from depression or mental illness?
On a global scale, the worlds people suffer from poverty, violence, and war. Haitis earthquake, African drought. When people of the world pray for relief, is that not good?
I know Gods thoughts are above mine, and that Gods ways are beyond my imagining. I am sure that some things that seem good to me are not. Still, these are hard words to live with in the midst of so much suffering. I believe; help my unbelief.
© 2010 Mary van Balen
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