The other day, I was talking on the phone with my sister. As we talked, I noticed that she was being strangely quiet. I quickly realized that our call had been disconnected. I had been talking to myself for at least a minute or two. Have you been there before? If so, you know the feeling of talking to yourself with no one listening can be frustrating. Scripture assures us that this is never the case when we pray to God. We have a God who always listens to us!
In Ephesians 3, Paul teaches us that because of Jesus, we have direct access to God in prayer. Before Jesus, the Jewish people relied on the high priest to go before God on their behalf. After Christ, everything changed. Because of Christ, we have direct access to God the Father, and we can come before Him boldly. We get to approach Him confidently as our Heavenly Father who loves us. This access to God makes all the difference.
Not only does Scripture promise that we can approach God boldly when we pray, but Scripture also promises that God hears us when we pray. 1 John 5:14 says, "We are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him." We can be sure that God hears us when we pray. What a promise we have to cling to! Like any good father, our Heavenly Father delights in hearing us when we pray. He wants to know what is on our minds. He cares about us. What concerns us concerns Him. Even more, we can expect that if He hears us when we pray, our Heavenly Father will respond to our prayers accordingly. This does not mean that our prayers will always be answered with a "yes," but it does mean that He will always answer according to our good and His glory.
You have a God who delights in hearing from you. That means you can approach Him boldly and confidently. You can pray about anything on your mind because He wants to hear about your concerns. Praise God that He is not aloof or uncaring, but instead that He is our loving Heavenly Father who always hears and responds when we turn to Him.
With the Scripture we studied today in mind, turn to God in prayer. Pray boldly. Pray confidently. Approach God, your Heavenly Father, knowing that He will hear you and respond. Pray about anything on your mind, remembering that He cares about you. Don't forget to praise Him for being a personal Heavenly Father who cares about His children.
13 I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. 14 And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. 15 And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for.
16 If you see a fellow believer sinning in a way that does not lead to death, you should pray, and God will give that person life. But there is a sin that leads to death, and I am not saying you should pray for those who commit it. 17 All wicked actions are sin, but not every sin leads to death.
18 We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them. 19 We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one.
20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and he is eternal life.
21 Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.
