You Learn to Trust God Through Prayer
By Rick Warren
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7 (NIV)
God is not only able to meet all of your needs; he’s eager to meet them! But when you forget how committed God is to helping you, it’s easy to stop asking for his help and to start depending on yourself.
Perhaps you only ask God for the “big stuff” and not the “small stuff.” Guess what? Everything is small to God. None of your requests are big in God’s eyes. He has every hair on your head numbered, and he knows how many fell out in the sink this morning.
You’re not bothering God when you give him your requests; he’s the one who set up the system of prayer in the first place. That’s why the New Testament tells you more than 20 times to ask for whatever you need in prayer. Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (NIV).
Sometimes, instead of asking God for something, you just worry about it. But if it’s big enough to worry about, it’s big enough to pray about. Worry won’t solve anything, but prayer will.
God grows your faith and trust the same way a parent teaches a child to trust. The Bible says,
“If you . . . know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give . . . to those who ask him” (Luke 11:13 NLT).
Here’s how it works between a parent and child. First, the child recognizes an unmet need. Second, the child expresses that need. Third, the parent meets that need.
God uses this same cycle to teach you how to trust him: You have an unmet need. You express that unmet need to God. He meets that need, and you learn to trust him more.
If you’re not expressing your needs to God, how can you grow in trust?
When you ask God, he will always prove his goodness. But sometimes you’ll have to wait patiently for God’s timing to deliver. He often does not give immediate answers because he wants to test your faith.
Go ahead—try it today. Take your needs to God in prayer. Then watch for the ways he answers your prayers and meets those needs. You’ll learn to trust that God is reliable and that you can count on him, no matter what.
PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick
Rick Warren is an innovative pastor, renowned author, and global influencer known for founding Saddleback Church, the Purpose Driven Network, the PEACE Plan, and Hope for Mental Health. He has written several best-selling books, including The Purpose Driven Life, which has sold over 35 million copies in 200 languages. Time magazine named Warren the most influential spiritual leader in America and one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Since stepping down from the lead pastor role at Saddleback in 2022, Warren has continued to inspire people through his Daily Hope Devotional and podcast Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope. His first book in a decade, Created to Dream, was released in April 2023.
For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!
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This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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