“When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform some miracle.” – Luke 23:8
I was raised in a Christian home, but like anyone else, I needed to come to a point where I made my parents’ faith my own. For me that happened late one night as I lay awake fretting.
For perhaps the first time in my life I was wondering, What if all this about God isn’t true? What if there is no God? Or what if there is, and He’s mean? Or He doesn’t care?
For the first time in my life I said a prayer that was not someone else’s words that I had memorized. It was, simply, God, if You’re there, give me a sign.
Something happened in that moment, though my memory isn’t clear as to what exactly it was. It may have been something randomly falling off a shelf. I do know that it made a sudden noise, and I was impressed! He answered me! I prayed again, and this time it was not the prayer of a seeker, but that of a spoiled brat: That was cool! Do it again!
Nothing happened.
You might imagine that I was disappointed, but on the contrary, I think God spoke to me more clearly in the “nothing” than in the noise. Though not an audible voice, the message was loud and clear, even to a very young child: You don’t need Me to do it again. You know I’m here. And I did know.
One thing was clear: God was there, and He cared about me enough to reveal Himself to me when I asked. But once I knew He was there, He also made it very clear that He was not there to entertain me. This was not some trained monkey, this was the God of the universe. And what He had for me was way more exciting than a few magic tricks.
Excellent post! Unfortunately, too many Christians never get the message. They continue to think God is there for their convenience, that whole “genie is a bottle thing.”
LikeLiked by 2 people
“Genie in a bottle” … Doesn’t it seem strange to you that people would believe something powerful enough to make palaces materialize can be at the beckon call of a mere mortal? #wishfulthinking
LikeLiked by 1 person
That must have been cool to have Him answer your prayer so quickly.
LikeLiked by 1 person
As I said, it was even cooler to “hear” the Still, Small Voice – not an audible voice, but a sense that I could know Him, – and He WANTED me to know Him – and not just as Someone who would give me whatever I wanted. He’s so much more than a “yes man.” When He says “no,” I know He’s got a better idea, and I can’t wait to see what it is! 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Absolutely!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Have you seen “God’s Got a Better Idea (So, What Else Is New?)” on my blog? You might get a chuckle out of it. Actually, my blog is full of those stories, where God was one step ahead of us all – we just needed a new (divine) perspective. 😉
LikeLike
I need to pray this. “God, if You’re there, give me a sign.” Thank you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I do hope you read the rest of the story! If we already know He’s there (and He promised He would be), He’s ready to take us past signs, to faith. It’s harder, I know, but the “signs” we wait for are more awesome than we can imagine. Watch for Him at work in unexpected ways – and let me know what you see.
LikeLike
I ɑll the time used to read paragraph in news papers but now aas I am a user of internet so from now I аam using net for posts,
thannks ttօ web. https://omovies.org/movie/15395/love-liza-2002-hd-720p-full-movie
LikeLike