July 20

Ask, Search, Knock

          “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.  Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone?  Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake?  If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Matthew 7:7-11

            My youngest daughter loves to play Hide-and-Seek.  Actually, what she loves to play is Hide-and-Find.  The hiding part of the game is okay.  The seeking part of the game is okay.  The part of the game where you actually find the other person...that’s the best.  She will shout with delight when she finds me hiding under the coats on the coat rack or trying to squeeze under the table.  And if I am taking too long to find her, she will leave her hiding spot to make it easier for her to be found.

            As Jesus is talking in the passage, he is addressing people who are seeking something.  Maybe they are looking for answers to hard questions.  Maybe they are looking for healing.  Maybe they are looking for a job or a spouse or hope.  Whatever it is, they are lacking something and Jesus encourages them to ask for help and directions; he encourages them to search, looking high and low until they find it; he encourages them to knock on doors, trying to gain entrance to homes and passages that had been locked to them before.  Jesus also tells them that if they want to find good things, they should ask their Heavenly Father.  He may not give exactly what is asked for, but He will give exactly what is the best.

            We asked for children.  My wife and I heard the call to be parents and she became pregnant and we had a son on the way.  The ultimate gift from God.  My child…your child…is a good gift from God.  They are not mistakes.  They are not curses.  They are not anchors that hold us down.  They are not challenges to overcome.  They are good, beautiful, vibrant, chaotic gifts from God, specifically given to us because they would make our lives and our world better.

            God knows how to give good gifts.  Gifts that bless us and the world around us.  Gifts that allow the best parts of us to shine and the worst parts of us to be transformed.  Gifts that draw us closer to being reflections of our Heavenly Father.  Those things that we were lacking and searching for?  God answers those desires through His gifts…like our kids.  Now I am pretty sure that I never have asked God to give me the gift of sleep deprivation or the gift of stepping on legos in the middle of the night or the gift of raising someone with autism.  I have, however, asked for joy and hope and compassion and the opportunity and ability to help people.  I have asked for patience and integrity and something to be passionate about.  I have asked for faith and laughter and rest.  All of these things have been answered through the gifts that are my children.  They are not what I was expecting, but they have been exactly what I was searching for.

            Our kids are not accidents.  They are not mistakes.  They are not curses.  They are God’s perfect gift to you that will bless the world and transform you heart.

A moment to reflect:

What are you searching for today?