Gifts!  There are so many different kinds. Years ago when I was a little girl I could hardly wait to open the bright colored packages on Christmas or birthdays. Now, as an adult, the joy of giving far overshadows the fun of receiving. It’s so wonderful to surprise someone and see the excitement on their face.

Some gifts come with instructions.  Were you ever really excited about a gift? Maybe so excited that you forgot to read the accompanying manual on how to put it together? I’ve done that a few times and was disappointed when it didn’t turn out the way I had hoped.

That reminds me of a very special gift that God the Father gives to His children. This special gift comes with instructions in our instruction manual, God’s Word. So often I haven’t used the instructions and I was disappointed at the end result. I am talking about the wonderful gift of prayer. What a privilege to be able to talk with God. I can praise and thank Him for His blessings and come to Him with my requests. Lately I’ve had so many important requests and I really want Him to listen and answer. But so often I rush ahead and forget all about the instructions for this very precious gift. Today I’d like to focus on one of the things I am still trying to learn from God’s Instruction Manual on prayer: Humility.

Jesus often taught using stories when He was on earth. In Luke 18:9-14 He tells of two men who went to the temple to pray. Jesus says in this passage, that one man prayed or spoke to himself, praising himself and announcing all of his good qualities to himself and whoever else was within hearing distance. The other man, humbly acknowledged to God that he was a sinner and cried for mercy. Jesus says that this man’s humble cry was answered but the proud prayer of the other man was not.

I like to think of myself as humble and that probably should be a warning sign to me. God wants me to come to Him, letting go of any control and, in humility, truly accepting that He knows best. I also need to realize that coming to God is an undeserved privilege. There is nothing good in me that can make me worthy to ask God for anything.

This shows us how wonderful God’s great love really is. When I come to Him on His terms He hears and will answer. One of God’s terms for those who come to Him is humility. Humility is the foundation for other important requirements in coming to God. Faith and trust do not flourish in an environment of pride but are the fruit of a humble spirit. Approaching God with a pure heart in which known sin has been confessed also springs forth from a humble spirit.

My prayer for myself and for you is that we might approach God with a spirit of true humility. May we use our Instruction Manual and pray in such a way that God will answer our prayers. What a wonderful gift. I want to use it to the fullest.

“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit…” Ephesians 6:18a

God bless you!