Tag Archive for: Matthew 7:7

The Courage to Be Curious

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Matthew 7:7 — Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

High school has rules.

No, not the ones printed in the handbook. Those are easy. You can read them and follow them.

I mean the other rules.

The ones everybody seems to know without anybody ever explaining them.

You sit with your people at lunch. You wear clothes that fit your crowd. Athletes hang out with athletes. Band kids hang out with band kids. Theater kids stick together.

Eventually, you learn where you belong, and you get pretty good at staying there.

They’re not written down anywhere, but you know the rules.

Until one morning when something strange happens.

The football player stands beside the quiet kid from chemistry.

The popular girl prays with the freshman nobody knows.

Students from different churches—and students with no church at all—end up standing around the same flagpole.

Every year, See You at the Pole has a way of bringing people together.

Some students come because they love Jesus. Some come because a friend asked them. Others are just curious.

And if you didn’t know, God has a thing for curious people.

Think about it.

Zacchaeus climbed a tree because he wanted to see Jesus. People followed Jesus because they wanted to know who He was. Again and again, people took a step closer because something about Jesus made them curious.

And that’s what I love about Jesus’ words in Matthew 7: “Keep on asking. Keep on seeking. Keep on knocking.”

He doesn’t tell us to pretend we already have everything figured out.

He invites us to come closer.

Ask questions.

Seek Him.

Knock on the door.

You see, curiosity can be a beautiful thing.

Sometimes it’s simply the courage to step outside what feels familiar and move toward something you don’t fully understand.

And you really can’t imagine what God might do with one small moment of curiosity.

So, if you’re planning to be at See You at the Pole, don’t just pray for your school.

Pray for the person standing on the edge of the crowd, wondering if they should walk over.

Pray for the student who is curious but nervous.

Pray for the one who doesn’t know exactly what they believe yet.

Because sometimes the first step toward Jesus is simply being willing to ask a question.

So maybe today, break a few of those unwritten rules.

Step outside your usual circle.

Walk toward someone who feels alone.

And if you’re the one standing on the edge, wondering whether you belong there, take a step closer.

Ask.

Seek.

Knock.

You never know what God might do with your curiosity.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Are there “unwritten rules” or social circles in your life that keep you from reaching out to certain people?
  • Have you ever been curious about Jesus but hesitant to take the next step? What held you back?
  • What question about God or faith have you been afraid to ask?
  • Who might be standing “on the edge of the crowd” in your school, workplace, church, or community? How could you make room for them?
  • What would it look like for you today to ask, seek, or knock—to take one small step closer to Jesus?
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Persuasively Persistent

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Matthew 7:7 — Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

As a mom of two young children, I would be rich if I got a dollar every time I heard the phrase, “Mom, can I have ______?” Even after saying the dreadful, life-altering, meltdown provoking word, “NO,” my children relentlessly approach me- asking the same question. They simply won’t take no for an answer.

While they’re learning to respect boundaries, I’ll admit that sometimes I give in—not because thea answer changed, but because they didn’t give up. Watching them has taught me something about faith. They ask boldly and don’t assume “no” means never.

God used my children to gently remind me of his fatherly character, and I began reflecting on the way I have approached God. More times than I’d like to admit-I asked once, hear no—or silence—and quietly retreat. Maybe you can relate?

Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:7 began to challenge that pattern: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

That’s not a one-time request. It’s not a hesitant whisper. No, it’s a continual posture of asking, seeking, and knocking. It is trusting the heart of the God who wants to answer us.

There is no coincidence that Luke chapter 18 consecutively tells of the parable of the persistent widow and the story of the little children coming to Jesus. God encourages us to always pray and not give up; the same way the widow approached the judge with her plea.

She persisted instead of retreating, until she got justice. Our Heavenly father tells us to approach him the same way the little children approached Jesus; with childlike faith instead of hindrance.

The next time you pray, I challenge you to approach God more like little children approach their parents and the widow approached the judge. Bold. Persistent. Willing to ask again. And to approach our Heavenly father with the childlike faith the little children approached Jesus with; confident that even when the answer isn’t what we hoped for, He is still listening—and still good.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Where have I stopped asking God because I didn’t like the first answer — or the silence?
  • Is there a prayer I quietly gave up on that I need to bring back to Him?
  • Do I approach God with hesitation… or with childlike trust?
  • Have I mistaken “wait” for “no”?
  • What would it look like for me to keep knocking instead of walking away?
  • Do I truly believe my Heavenly Father is good — even when His answer isn’t what I hoped for?
  • Where is God inviting me to be bold and persistent in prayer right now?
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When God Sends a Friend

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Matthew 7:7 — Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

When Dad passed to glory, his beloved pup Billie Jo lost her reason for getting up in the morning.

She’d been his partner in crime in every conceivable way. Every morning, she’d ride shotgun for the coffee run. Every evening, she’d curl herself up into the crook of his knees.

After he was gone, she wasn’t interested in anything—or anyone—else. Our dogs tried, bless their hearts, to pull her into a game or two. She’d just turn her head away. She ate just enough to keep living, and her eyes stayed fixed on the door, like maybe she was waiting for him to walk back through.

I prayed for her one night while rinsing dishes. It was just a quiet, “Lord, help her find someone to love again.”

A few days later, Steve Holland—our funeral director—came by. Steve is the sort of man who can step into a room where grief is thick as blazes and somehow make it breathable. He stepped in a few days before the service, wearing that warm, steady smile of his.

Billie Jo was lying in the corner when Steve came in. She lifted her head, studied him for half a second, and then… well, she crossed the room and pressed her head into his chest. Steve wrapped his arms around her without missing a beat. It was like they’d both been handed exactly what they needed.

By the end of the week, she had a new home at Holland Funeral Home. Steve calls her “Boo” now, and she’s earned her place as a full-time comforter of the brokenhearted. She sits quietly beside those who can’t find words, reminding them they’re not alone.

I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. God has a way of taking small prayers and giving them big answers. And I have to wonder, how many miracles do we miss because we never think to ask?

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Ask Boldly, Receive Abundantly

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“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

Matthew 7:7 

He almost didn’t do it.

His mom’s diagnosis had turned their world upside down, and he wanted to help. But what could a 14-year-old really do?

The idea had formed in a rush: if he shaved his head, he could raise money for cancer research. But standing on his neighbor’s porch now with a pair of clippers, he felt ridiculous.

He clutched them in his hand like a lifeline. “Uh—hi,” he started, voice cracking. “My mom has cancer. I want to raise money for research, so I’m shaving my head. Would you be willing to donate?”

Silence.

His heart pounded. The awkwardness clawed at him, but then the neighbor asked, “How much are you hoping to raise?”

He shared his goal. It sounded impossible the moment he said it, but the neighbor disappeared inside. When he returned, he handed the boy a check for a thousand dollars. The exact amount!

The boy’s mouth fell open. “Wait. What?”

The neighbor just smiled. “Yeah, and I am also going to talk at our homeowners’ association meeting tonight about how we can do more.”

He walked home with the check in hand, mind spinning. He had expected pocket change. But this? This was so much bigger.

All he had done was ask. And generosity had answered—louder than he ever imagined.

We tell ourselves we are too small to make a difference. That what we have to offer could never be enough. But maybe the real question is not if we can help. Maybe it is whether we are willing to step out, awkward and unsure, and simply try.

Because sometimes, when we do, hope shows up in ways we never saw coming.

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