Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
In His delightful little story in Luke 11 Jesus tells how the man who begged his neighbor for some bread for his unexpected guests kept on begging at midnight until the wearied neighbor finally got up and gave him all he needed (vss. 5-8). Then comes the heart-warming assurance from Jesus: if we continually "beg" the heavenly Father for some "bread," He will never give us a "stone."
Continual praying for the gift of the Holy Spirit means continual hunger and thirst for "bread" and the "water of life." It means continually feeling in need, feeling wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Rev. 3:17); continually sensing that our "pantry" is empty. There is no point in continually "asking" unless we have that continual hunger and thirst, otherwise our prayers are like the Tibetan prayer-wheels where the prayers flap in the breeze 24 hours a day. God has trouble "feeding" anyone who isn't hungry.
Perhaps before we beg for the "bread" we should ask Him to give us an appetite that feels our emptiness--the sentient awareness that the TV soap opera or sports game only masks the unconscious malnutrition of our souls. Often we pray for answers that it seems the Lord wisely delays to give us; but for certain, a prayer, "Lord, show me my need! Reveal to me my selfishness, my hypocrisy, my buried sin,"--that prayer will be answered quickly because it is the kind of prayer John says must be answered for it is "according to God's will" (1 John 5:14).
Lastly, Jesus' little story tells a secret: when you ask for "bread" in order to give it to someone else (not yourself!) that is what brings a guaranteed answer in the positive. What a thrill of joy is yours and mine when we learn to "ask to give."
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: June 19, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
------------------------------
Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.
In His delightful little story in Luke 11 Jesus tells how the man who begged his neighbor for some bread for his unexpected guests kept on begging at midnight until the wearied neighbor finally got up and gave him all he needed (vss. 5-8). Then comes the heart-warming assurance from Jesus: if we continually "beg" the heavenly Father for some "bread," He will never give us a "stone."
Continual praying for the gift of the Holy Spirit means continual hunger and thirst for "bread" and the "water of life." It means continually feeling in need, feeling wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Rev. 3:17); continually sensing that our "pantry" is empty. There is no point in continually "asking" unless we have that continual hunger and thirst, otherwise our prayers are like the Tibetan prayer-wheels where the prayers flap in the breeze 24 hours a day. God has trouble "feeding" anyone who isn't hungry.
Perhaps before we beg for the "bread" we should ask Him to give us an appetite that feels our emptiness--the sentient awareness that the TV soap opera or sports game only masks the unconscious malnutrition of our souls. Often we pray for answers that it seems the Lord wisely delays to give us; but for certain, a prayer, "Lord, show me my need! Reveal to me my selfishness, my hypocrisy, my buried sin,"--that prayer will be answered quickly because it is the kind of prayer John says must be answered for it is "according to God's will" (1 John 5:14).
Lastly, Jesus' little story tells a secret: when you ask for "bread" in order to give it to someone else (not yourself!) that is what brings a guaranteed answer in the positive. What a thrill of joy is yours and mine when we learn to "ask to give."
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: June 19, 2000.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to: dailybread@1888message.org
------------------------------
Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.
