Menu

Abide & Ask

Abide & Ask

Published Aug 27, 2019 | Women Mentoring WomenTerri Jenkin 

“If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you” (John 15:7).

“Delight thyself also in the Lord; [ABIDE] and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way [ABIDE] unto the Lord, trust [ABIDE] also in him; and he shall bring it to pass” (Psalms 37:4-5).

The life that abides in Christ is a life of faith rooted in His Word. “According to your faith be it unto you” (Matthew 9:29).  

Jesus assures us that if we abide in Him, we shall have power with God.  “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16). As we abide, everything is yielded to His life in us which affects our ordinary wishes and desires.  Andrew Murray wrote, “as the believer abides in Christ, the savior breaths His desires into Him.” I experienced this when in 1979 I became pregnant for the third time; I remember the morning I asked God not to give me one but give me two. It was not until much later (after the twins were born) that I realized it was God who gave me the desire to ask for twins and then answered according to His will.  

With all this in mind, I have been examining my prayers. I pray “thy will be done,” but the truth is, I want answers that benefit me or others (what I call self-seeking prayers). The answer comes and it is not what I expected, or I don’t see the answer and I become discouraged instead of doing what I recently heard in a country western song: “Thank God for unanswered prayers.”

As I abide in Him, I am challenged to align my prayers so John 15:8 will be true in my life. “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit . . .”

May this be your prayer as it is mine:  “Lord work in my life so You will be glorified and fruit will be developed in my life that I might serve You more effectively, Amen.”