Post from July 21, 2023

”👟 RSD 1180 ✅ Today’s Verse: “I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity, he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.” — Luke 11:8

The Message translation, Luke 11:5-13: “Then He said, ‘Imagine what would happen if you went to a friend in the middle of the night and said, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread. An old friend traveling through just showed up, and I don’t have a thing on hand.’ The friend answers from his bed, ‘Don’t bother me. The door’s locked; my children are all down for the night; I can’t get up to give you anything.’ But let me tell you, even if he won’t get up because he’s a friend, if you stand your ground, knocking and waking all the neighbors, he’ll finally get up and get you whatever you need. Here’s what I’m saying: Ask and you’ll get; Seek and you’ll find; Knock and the door will open. Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we’re in. If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? If your little girl asks for an egg, do you trick her with a spider? As bad as you are, you wouldn’t think of such a thing—you’re at least decent to your own children. And don’t you think the Father who conceived you in love will give the Holy Spirit when you ask Him?”

Are you ever around little kids? I don’t mean babies, although they are very tiny and very cute, I mean kids—think like 3-6 maybe? Don’t get me wrong: 3-6 year olds are also very tiny and very cute—I mean: I even coo over my big ones (11th and 12th grade) at school every now and then (sigh my sweet babies: they are kind of precious…sometimes 😉). So, little kids: that Preschool-1st gradeish time—do you find that they ask a lot of questions? Like, a lot a lot. A lot. Sometimes (well, maybe more often) the questions don’t have anything to do with anything, but, for whatever reason, it does to them, so we do our best with it. Come to think of it, sometimes my big babies (11th/12th grade) do the same thing, but I do my best with it because I figure that something’s bouncing around in their brains and they just need to ask. You know, if it’s that much on the forefront of their mind, I don’t want to just blow it off (the “big life” questions are actually my favorites). It’s obviously important to them, or at least it’s important enough in this moment to occupy that much of their conscious thought. And, if it’s important to them, it’s important to me. I love my babies (yes, the 16-18 year olds are my babies—I’d do anything for them), and I want them to be curious and ask and grow and learn and to have the best chance to live the best kind of life in their little futures. My guess is that’s what little kids are doing too—just with more frequency because little kids are, well, little. Y’all should hear some of my afternoon convos in Ballet with some of the smaller humans I teach. It’s funny cause sometimes even the Kindergartners seem so self-aware. “You know, I’m still itty-bitty, so my big bubba looks out for me.” Actual quote from my six-year-old Goddaughter on our way from school to ballet. So, I spend my days with bigger kids in PreCal and Calculus and my afternoons/evenings with KG to about 5th grade in ballet (sometimes partying it up with similar age groups in acrobatics). And y’all, y’all’s kids ask a lot of questions.

I don’t mind it—I like it, even—questions are how you learn. Sometimes they’re pertaining to what we’re doing; sometimes they’re random; sometimes they’re asking for stuff 🙄. Y’all know it. I imagine having littles (even the big littles) with you around the clock presents even more opportunities for asking for stuff (e.g. snacks during summertime, or for the bigger ones, food and gas money) and still asking loads of knowledge questions too (although the teenagers are going to think a little harder about your answers lol). I imagine these can become daunting at times, but you entertain them (to an extent, of course…there are times when I temporarily shut down the questions too lol) because when it comes down to it, they’re just kids, testing freedom, testing autonomy, trying to figure things out, making sense of the world…all of that. And, I can’t get too annoyed with it (at least I don’t have much room to talk) because I ask a lot of questions too…always have. Just ask my parents or anyone who has taught me in the classroom. I’ve just always been curious about everything. As far as asking for things, we all back way off on that as adults because we’re supposed to make our own way and can provide for ourselves…mostly (I mean, inflation, am I right?).

But, that isn’t what I mean by “mostly.” See, in Luke 11:1-4 which precedes today’s passage, the disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray. I’ve known the prayer He gave them since before I realized I learned it, and, if you’re familiar with Christianity, you probably do too (or you’re at least familiar with it). “‘Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil’” (Luke 11:2-4). That hits all the spots; it’s perfectly constructed (I mean, think about Who did it). The part that I know I have trouble remembering (no, not as in “forget the words”—I mean really considering when go to God in prayer) is the “give us this day our daily bread” part. I ask for forgiveness, do my best to express love and gratitude (although I can do better…we all can btw), and I remember to pray for situations and people (even my own situations…that seem more “important” I guess?)…but actually asking for something (no, not the lottery or anything like that)—it’s like that seems wrong. Like, I don’t want to ask for too much, you know? Too much for God? Like, I am going to burden God with any request I might make. I’M going to burden GOD? Yeah, as I type this, it doesn’t sound smart to me either. And, based on what I hear from others and what I read, I know I’m not the only person who has had this trouble. You know, in studying about prayer (like not just today) and in reading today’s passage, I think to myself, “Maybe some of us have some of this adult thing a little wrong.” Like, we’re supposed to take care of everything and not bother God with it…like He doesn’t already know. Right, it doesn’t actually make sense, but, I’m telling you: it’s a hang up for some of us.

In fact, the example Jesus gave to the disciples in today’s verse lets me know that whispers we couldn’t have been the only people who thought this way. Today’s verse is basically saying you go to a friend for help, and he or she is annoyed, but you stand your ground like Sophia from “The Golden Girls” negotiating the price of a nectarine in the middle of the store, and their annoyance turns to action because the annoyance of you outside the door supersedes the annoyance of getting out of bed. You persisted, ergo your friend remembered to be a friend. This same quality of persistence isn’t always annoyance though and is present even today in business negotiations and in legal dealings…or when my Juniors asked me for an elf for our classroom 🤦🏼‍♀️ (yes, Santa sent them an elf…Walter Theodore Gerald…they voted…then had a runoff…we also learned matrices that day if anyone’s wondering). Back to the important part of today’s reflection: Jesus uses this situation of the “reluctant to get out of bed” friend to illuminate a point that, I think, people don’t stop to consider all the time. If even your friend will come out and help you after you’ve asked, wouldn’t God (who cares infinitely more for your well-being) provide you with more than you could ever ask for if you just go to Him? Praying helps us to grow in our faith; it helps us get to know God and God’s voice (to distinguish His signs and words and nudgings from those of others); it also helps us get to know ourselves. Wouldn’t we already know ourselves? What? Better than God does? Nope. Sometimes we realize things about ourselves in the questions we ask.

See, sometimes all we have are requests. All we have are questions. A three year old might ask for juice instead of saying “I’m thirsty.” See, the thirst might not register as “Oh, this is the problem I need to solve.” They might not know how to name thirst. The kid just knows they feel some type of way and that they want juice. When one of my big kids begs me to extend a due date (before the due date, of course) with this certain look in their eyes, I know they’re telling me that they’re stressed. Sometimes even the big kids can’t name it when they feel some type of way. We’ve discussed before how, to God, we’re all just little kids trying to figure things out. So, it makes sense that, if we can read between the lines with kids, God can do a wayyyy better job with us. So, He wants us to come to Him with things, ask knowledge questions, ask for things. See, when we pray for other people, we’re trusting God to meet their needs because we love them and know that God will take good care of them…which is also growing us because we’re trusting God. When we thank God, we are acknowledging (both to Him and to ourselves) how God has provided. But, sometimes all we have are questions. You know, sometimes learning and arriving at more questions actually affords us more knowledge than we realize. Maybe yesterday we didn’t even know enough to know that this question was even a thing. So, when it seems we just have more questions, maybe that’s because we now know what we’re supposed to be looking for. When we come to God with our requests, whether or not He answers the way we’d like (“Thy will be done”—He’s going to do what’s best for us…God’s not a genie), we are 1) trusting God 2) growing in our faith and 3) learning more about our own hearts.

Maybe you’re not requesting juice because you want juice; maybe you’re requesting juice because you’re thirsty and can’t name it. So, ask God for juice if you want it, but be prepared for, “Are you sure you’re not thirsty because what you actually need is to sit and rest and sip some water? Maybe that’s why you’re thirsty?” And, the great thing about God is that He’s going to keep inching you toward where you’re supposed to be and what you’re supposed to find each time you come to Him. All those little kids who ask God not to get sucked down the drain at bath time know that God will protect them: that’s just how they say “I’m afraid.” But, they’re specific: they don’t want to get sucked down the drain, and hey, it’s working for them, isn’t it? We all know that a bathtub drain can’t do that, but these four-year-olds don’t. But, instead of asking their parents to explain fluid mechanics, they just ask God to protect them from something scary. I think we all (as adults) still come to God for things, but I think we’re guilty of trying to filter (“What can I handle myself, and what do I bother God with?”). Yeah, God wants us to do our best to make our way in life, but He wants us to come to Him with anything, all the things—if we’re a little sad or stuck or frustrated or anxious or hoping for something—He wants us to come to Him. No matter how seemingly insignificant it is to us; God still listens. The more I think on this prayer thing, the more I think, “Maybe these kids and all their questions are onto something.” Think about it. We didn’t stop asking God for stuff like, “Please let the cafeteria be serving pizza tomorrow” until we figured that we were so “grown up” that we somehow had to worry about all or most of “our daily bread” on our own.”