Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 7:7-12
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We talk a lot about prayer in the Church and Kingdom of God. We know the promises. For example, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.”
It’s actually one of the most encouraging passages in Scripture. Jesus tells us plainly: God hears us when we pray. Yet, for many of us, if we’re honest, our prayer lives don’t reflect the power and promise in these verses.
Why is that? I mean, if we truly believe that God hears us, that He answers our prayers, and that He’s eager to give us good gifts, why don’t we spend more time praying?
There’s often a disconnect between what we say we believe about prayer and how much time we actually spend in it. It doesn’t make sense when you think about it.
If we truly believe prayer moves the hand of God, we should be rushing to pray more often—bringing our concerns, our joys, our everything to Him. And yet, we get caught up in life, busy schedules, and distractions, and prayer gets pushed aside.
But Jesus doesn’t present prayer as a last resort. He invites us to make it a priority, to come to Him consistently—asking, seeking, and knocking.
In this passage, He paints a picture of a loving Father who delights in giving good gifts to His children. Just as any good parent would never give their child a stone when they ask for bread, how much more will our Heavenly Father give us exactly what we need when we ask Him?
This is the heart of God. He is not distant or disinterested in our lives. He is attentive and eager to respond when we come to Him in prayer. But to fully experience the power of prayer, we have to believe in it. If we believe that God hears us, that He is good, and that He knows what’s best for us, then we will make prayer an essential part of our lives.
And here’s the exciting truth: the more we pray, the more we grow in our relationship with God. The more we bring our requests to Him, the more we see His faithfulness. And when we ask, seek, and knock in faith, we start to experience the incredible peace and joy that comes from trusting our lives to His care.
And the more we experience his faithfulness and power, the more we are compelled to return to Him in prayer. It’s a cycle that builds on itself.
What if today, you made a commitment to pray more? What if, instead of worrying or trying to handle everything on your own, you decided to bring every need, every decision, and every desire to God first?
Think of how your life could change if you spent more time in prayer, trusting God to guide you, provide for you, and open doors you didn’t even know existed. That’s what He promises: “For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
We all believe in prayer. Now it’s time to act on that belief. Let’s make prayer a daily priority, trusting that the God who loves us hears us and is ready to give us good gifts when we ask.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you for the incredible promise that you hear us when we pray. Help me to believe in the power of prayer more fully and to make it a priority in my life. Amen.