Some of us have big needs. Some of us have big dreams. Some of us have both.
Sometimes we’re afraid to pray specifically for these needs and dreams. Maybe we think we’re being too selfish. Maybe we’re pretty sure God isn’t going to answer our prayer the way we want. Maybe we’ve stopped praying for that thing because we tried it for a while and God didn’t move.
I was thinking about that this morning as I read the story at the end of Mark 10 where Bartimaeus the blind beggar calls out to Jesus, asks to receive sight, and gets healed. If you’ve got needs or dreams that you’d like God to answer (and I think most of us do), check out what Bartimaeus did.
1) He called out to Jesus. He didn’t just sit there hoping he would get lucky. “Maybe something good will happen today” He put himself on the line and called out, even when other people were telling him to shut up. In fact, when he was getting discouragement it says he cried out even louder.
2) He told Jesus exactly what he wanted. Jesus asked him “What do you want?”. He could have said something vague like “I want to be blessed” or “I want a touch from You”, thinking that receiving sight was too much to ask for. But his request was specific and honest. He knew what he wanted, and he asked for it. “I want to see.”
Jesus not only healed him, He told him it was his faith that made him well. Now obviously, God doesn’t always move in our lives because our faith is great. And we all know it’s a good thing that we don’t always get what we want. But if I’m reading the Bible correctly, sometimes He does move when we have faith, because we have faith.
So if you have a dream or a need that requires God to do something, let Him know about it. Be honest and specific with Him (because He knows anyway), and have faith that He can do it. And if you’ve been doing that for a while and haven’t seen anything yet, don’t be discouraged. Like Bartimaeus, let it fuel you to shout louder.
It’s not some magic formula for you to get what you want, but it’s a great way to continue to develop that relationship with God.
Every good human relationship is based on honesty and communication. I think our relationship with God is the same way. Without those things, there really isn’t much of a relationship, is there?