One last thing...
Lord, teach us to pray.
To which Jesus replied...
Remember your Father.
Keep in mind your many siblings.
It's all about my glory.
And your transformation (kingdom life).
One day at a time.
Love mercy. Hate sin.
Beware of the danger.*
It is in the context of this model for my prayers that Jesus goes on to tell a story that ends like this:
"Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find;
knock and it will be open to you..."
Sound familiar? He's not finished.
"What father among you if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent?
Or if he asks for an egg, will you give him a scorpion?"
i'm pretty certain this will reveal my own ignorance, but i have quoted both of those texts (loosely, i'm sure) dozens of times --- and have claimed them for myself --- totally out of the context of the first four verses of this chapter.
During the most difficult weeks of my mom's decline,
i was the daughter asking for a fish and an egg.
And there, on my plate, God served up a serpent and a scorpion.
At least that's how it seemed.
i was asking and asking.
Knocking and knocking.
i was the impudent friend pounding on the door.
And the door stayed tightly sealed.
At least that's how it seemed.
You know i know better, because i am confident in the character and nature of God. He gives only good gifts to His children. But i just don't get it. And it's left me...well, mildly bitter. Beyond grudging obedience, why do i pray? i'm telling you, i asked for a fish and it feels like i got a scorpion. (p.s. Can i just pause here and acknowledge my deep love for a God who will allow me to be petulant? i love that He is more concerned about my soul than about my manners.)
The first "lightbulb" that came on for me this week is that just because Jesus says a father who loves his children would not give them serpents and scorpions when they asked for fish and eggs doesn't mean he necessarily gave them fish and eggs, either. Isn't that a radical thought? It's a basic parenting principle --- a loving father will certainly not torture his children, but he also may not give them exactly what they ask for.
If my son asked for oreos for dinner.
I would not give him borscht
(which is a cold purple soup that my mother once tried to feed us).
But I would not give him oreos either.
i would have given him something nutritious. Like pizza. :-)
What you can be sure of in relationship to a loving father is that what He gives you will be good for you...and it will ultimately bring you great vitality & joy. Wow. That's significant. i may not have been given fish and eggs, but i can be confident that what MY FATHER gave me was not a scorpion. What He gave was what was best for me.
Which takes me back to those first four verses ... which begin with "Our FATHER"...
Here's my second "lightbulb".
In light of Luke 11,
i'm wondering if my disappointment and bitterness
are the overflow of my not "by-the-Book" prayers.
i'm not suggesting that godliness requires my strict and exclusive recitation of the words of Jesus from Luke 11:1-4. It does occur to me, however, that my desires, my hopes and plans and dreams for fish and eggs...these prayers, uttered within the framework of the Lord's prayer would be radically different than the helpless, frantic asking & knocking that have characterized my prayer life. Perhaps i would grow to anticipate His love and ultimate care as His plan unfolds and my plate is filled up with good things from His pantry.
i am pondering whether my prayer life, patterned after these God-breathed words, would change me........and isn't that, ultimately, the whole point?
One last thing. Perhaps the only unambiguous truth in this text is the closing promise from Jesus, verse 13. Without this promise, we are lost. Do yourself a favor and look it up......
Lord, teach us to pray.
Amen.
*my interpretation, a summary from my last post
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