Which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matt. 7:9-11)

Isn’t it wonderful how God tells us to bring our requests to him — big or small? This truth hit home for me during a difficult season. From his prison cell, my newly believing, younger brother with mental limitations prayed that God would help my parents find his runaway dog.

I have to admit that I thought, “God has got bigger problems to deal with!” But my father, who still wanted to find ways to show love to his wayward son, went to the parking lot where “ol’ Red” had run away the week before.

After he’d called out Red’s name several times with no response, my father said, “This is silly. What am I doing?” Then, as he turned to walk back to the car, there was ol’ Red, wagging his tail!

Jesus promised, “Your Father who is in heaven [will] give good things to those who ask him.” That’s not a promise to answer every whim but to give what is best for our souls. And there is no qualification on the significance of the gift – or of the requester. God will simply provide what is best for our eternal care, even to wayward children who ask. So, make your requests known to God. He cares. He’s listening.

Prayer:
Father, as I come to you in prayer today, help me to realize that you delight in giving good gifts to your children. Help me not to put limits on what you can do or how much you care because of my wayward heart.