Ask Boldly! Why Beating Around the Bush Annoys God

Have you ever watched a child tiptoe around asking for something they really want? Imagine this:

Little Sarah stands in front of her dad, twisting her fingers, staring at the floor. "Daddy… um… the weather is nice today… and, well, my friend Lucy has this new doll… and her dad bought it last week… and it’s really pretty…" She sighs dramatically but never actually says, "Can I have one too?"

As a parent, this is frustrating! A loving father wants to give good gifts to his child—but how can he if she won’t just ask?

The Spiritual Parallel:

Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you" (Matthew 7:7), yet we often mirror Sarah’s nervous dance. We drop hints in prayer ("God, You know my needs…"), complain to others about our struggles, or try to manipulate circumstances instead of coming to our Father with raw, specific requests.

Why This Annoys God (In a Good Way):

1. It Wastes Time – Like Sarah’s dad, God already knows your heart (Psalm 139:4). Circling your real need in prayer is spiritual small talk.

2. It Doubts His Love – Hesitation implies you fear His "no" or indifference. But if earthly fathers give good gifts, "how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts…?" (Matthew 7:11).

3. It Delays Breakthroughs – James 4:2 says "You do not have because you do not ask." Your vague prayers might be the very barrier to your answer.

The Fix:

• Ask directly: "Lord, I need $500 for rent by Friday."

• Ask confidently: "You’re my Provider—I trust You’ll make a way."

• Ask repeatedly (Luke 18:1-8)—not because God is forgetful, but because persistence aligns our hearts with His will.

Closing Challenge:
Stop the spiritual small talk. Your Father isn’t annoyed by your asks—He’s annoyed by your hesitation. Come boldly (Hebrews 4:16), and watch Him respond.

Prayer Prompt: "God, I’m done circling. Today, I boldly ask for __________. Thank You for hearing me!"

I Give You My All

God,

Wanting nothing, wanting nothing,

All I am and all I have I give to You!

Holding nothing, holding nothing,

All I am and all I have I give to You!

Psalms 121

 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?

 My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

 He will not let your foot slip—
    He who watches over you will not slumber;

 Indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

 The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;

 The sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    He will watch over your life;

 The Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.

Psalms 121

Show me Your face, Lord

Show me Your face, Lord Show me Your face And Then gird up my legs that I may stand in this holy place Show me Your face, Lord Your power and your grace And I will make it to the end if I could just see Your face I know i can make it to the end if I can just see Your face, O Jesus I can make it to the end if I can just see Your face see you face take one look at your precious face If I can just see Your face

I Wanna Go Deeper!

Call me back to You, I need Your mercy.

Draw me close to You, I need Your grace.

Shallow waters can never satisfy my thirst, Jesus!
I want more of You!

Shallow idols can never satisfy my hunger, Jesus!
I need more of You!


Mold me, use me LORD for Your awesome glory.

Shape me, fill me LORD, with Your awesome presence.


My praise
My worship
My devotion
My prayer
My adoration
I wanna go deeper
My love
My joy
My reverence
I wanna go deeper

Take me in

Take me past the outer courts
Into the Holy Place
Past the brazen Alter
Lord, I want to see Your face
Pass me by the crowds of people
The priests who sing Your praise
I hunger and thirst for Your righteousness
But it's only found in one place


Take me into the Holy of Holies
Take me in by the blood of the Lamb
Take me into the Holy of Holies
Take the coal, touch my lips, here I am



Take me past the outer courts
Into the Holy Place
Past the brazen Alter
Lord, I want to see Your face
Pass me by the crowds of people
The priests who sing Your praise
I hunger and thirst for Your righteousness
And it's only found in one place

I will wait for you!

To my future husband,

I will wait for you.

And I will know you

because when you speak,

I will be reminded of Solomon’s wisdom,

your ability to lead will remind me of Moses,

your faith will remind me of Abraham,

your confidence in God’s Word will remind me of Daniel,

your inspiration will remind me of Paul,

your heart for God will remind me of David,

your attention to detail will remind me of Noah,

your integrity will remind me of Joseph,

and your ability to abandon your own will, will remind me of the disciples,

but your ability to love selflessly and unconditionally will remind me of Christ.

But I won’t need to identify you by any special Matthews

or any special marks,

’cause His Word will be tatted all over your heart.

And you will know me,

and you will find me,

where

the boldness of Esther

meets the warm closeness of Ruth,

where the hospitality of Lydia

is aligned with the submission of Mary,

which is engulfed in the tears of a praying Hanna.

I will be the one,

drenched in Proverbs 31,

waiting for you.

I love you even before I meet you.

Your future wife,

Judy

Thanks Janette...ikz

How to Pray

Tell God all that is in your heart, as one unloads one's heart, its pleasures and its pains, to a dear friend. 

Tell God your troubles, that God may comfort you; tell God your joys, that God may sober them; tell God your longings, that God may purify them; tell God your dislikes, that God may help you conquer them; talk to God of your temptations, that God may shield you from them.

Show God the wounds of your heart, that God may heal them. If you thus pour out all your weaknesses, needs, troubles, there will be no lack of what to say.

 Talk out of the abundance of the heart, without consideration say just what you think. Blessed are they who attain to such familiar, unreserved intercourse with God. 

Thanks --Francois Fenelon

My Alabaster Box

The room grew still
As she made her way to Jesus
She stumbles through the tears that made her blind
She felt such pain
Some spoke in anger
Heard folks whisper
There's no place here for her kind
Still on she came
Through the shame that flushed her face
Until at last, she knelt before his feet
And though she spoke no words
Everything she said was heard
As she poured her love for the Master
From her box of alabaster


And I've come to pour
My praise on Him
Like oil from Mary's alabaster box
Don't be angry if I wash his feet with my tears
And I dry them with my hair
You weren't there the night He found me
You did not feel what I felt
When he wrapped his love all around me and
You don't know the cost of the oil
In my alabaster box

I can't forget the way life used to be
I was a prisoner to the sin that had me bound
And I spent my days
Poured my life without measure
Into a little treasure box
I'd thought I'd found
Until the day when Jesus came to me
And healed my soul
With the wonder of His touch
So now I'm giving back to Him
All the praise He's worthy of
I've been forgiven
And that's why
I love Him so much


And I've come to pour
My praise on Him
Like oil from Mary's alabaster box
Don't be angry if I wash his feet with my tears
And dry them with my hair (my hair)
You weren't there the night Jesus found me
You did not feel what I felt
When He wrapped his loving arms around me and
You don't know the cost of the oil
Oh, you don't know the cost of my praise
You don't know the cost of the oil
In my alabaster box


~Cece Winans

Worship

The only time that I feel like I am on top of the world is when I am down on my knees with my hands lifted up in worship.

Thank You God for such moments.

Spending time with God II

Lately, I have been reading the book of John in the Bible a lot. I am absolutely amazed by God's gift to us, Jesus Christ, and His miracles. So far, am particularly amazed by chapter 4; the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman.

The MORE time you spend with GOD-- the more PEACE, joy, understanding and clarity you will have!

John 4: 23: But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers


 Dear God,

I pray that you may give me the grace and desire to be a true worshiper that will worship in spirit and truth. Please give me the desire to spend more time with You, and the desire to read Your word.

Thank You God!

Love,

Judy

Spending Time with God I

God intimately resides deep in our hearts and He longs for us to share our hearts with Him. The One who loves you and calls you His wants you to confide in Him. What feeds your soul? What do you love and what don't you like?

This might sound crazy, but God actually loves to spend time with you. We often worry about how to spend time with God, struggling with how we can reach him. But what if it was the other way around?

What if God is the one longing for you -- to let Him into your world -- to explore together what moves your heart and feeds your soul?

Listen and hear His quiet, soft whispers to you.
{listen} "I am standing at the door and knocking. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come into your home and share a meal with you, and you with me." Rev.3:20

The door Jesus is standing behind is the doorway to your heart. And no one can open it except you.
The home Jesus longs to step into? It's the innermost place where you can just be you. To be known. To rest. Isn't that home?

The meal Jesus longs for you to share with Him?

Soul food. Will you let God refresh your soul with what uniquely refuels you (the most simplest things will do). And let go of what simply drains you (even the things that appear to be no-brainer to others)?

{confide} Uncover my heart and my story, Jesus. Help me let you back into those tender places where I can just be me. Help me to hear your whispers.

*Stolen from thebonniegray.com

Lord, Would You Hold Me While I Cry.

Lately, this song has been on my mind. I thought I would share it out with you, my friends! I have shared the link to the audio version.

 WOULD YOU HOLD ME WHILE I CRY

 

It's been one of those days
If anything could go wrong it went wrong
I know I'm feeling sorry for me
There's a lot of self-pity going on
Tomorrow I will be okay
The dawn will bring a brand new day
I'm sure by then I'll be fine
Lord today I really need a friend
I know that you would understand
Would you hold me while I cry

I take a lot of your time
When I should be strong
I should be standing by now when it's you I'm leaning on
You've always kept me safe from harm, like a child in your arms
You've cradled me through hardships faced in life
Lord it's just one of those days I've been fobbed in every way
Will you hold me while I cry?

I try to be strong but if anyone can fall apart, I fall apart
I run back to you again and you heal my broken heart
You have truly been a friend, reaching out to lend a hand
Lord when you could have passed me by
I'm asking for your strength today
Lift my spirit Lord I pray
Will you just hold me while I cry

I take a lot of your time when I should be strong
I should be standing by now but it's you I'm leaning on
You've always kept me safe from harm like a child in your arms
You've cradled me through hardships faced in life
Lord it's just one of those days
I've been fobbed in every way
Will you hold me while I cry

You've always kept me safe from harm
Like a child in your arms
You've cradled me though hardships faced in life
Lord it's just one of those days
I've been fobbed in every way
Would you hold me while I cry?

Would You Hold Me While I cry- Karen Peck 

I Belong to You!

My will wants to be god and have life in itself- to be self-made, self-defined. It seems a blow to its pride to think that I am created- that the source of my life is You, that I receive from You all that I truly am. To myself, however- to my eternal self- it is the greatest delight- to live only in You, that You are my Creator and that I belong to You.

It is humbling and exulting at the same time- to think that my Creator should come down to me and become like me- suffering with me in all that I suffered, living and dying for me and raising me with Him into His own life; that I should be able to know Him made manifest.

I long to let all the love in me flow up to You. I have nothing in me to give You that did not first come from You. It came from You and returns to You, but through me and is therefore precious and delightful to You, because I am the creation of Your desire- I exist because You desired me to exist.

I do not have life within myself, as You and Abba do- the life I have within me is Yours. You could take and receive life and love only from within Yourself, but You desired to so through others, who are delightful to You in themselves and in this way, the love is even more delicious to You and so I return myself, my life, to You, my Creator- Jesus! I give myself back to You. I live only in You and only for You- I am only for You and no one takes of me but You, because all that I am is only Yours and consecrated to You and sealed by Your Spirit to You.

          *  *  *

Not angels, nor demons, no power on earth or heaven
Not distance, nor danger, no trouble now or ever


Nothing can take me from Your great love
Forever this truth remains


I belong, I belong to You


Not hardship, nor hunger, no pain or depth of sorrow,
Not weakness, nor failure, no broken dream or promise,

Nothing can take me from Your great love ,
Forever this truth remains!

I belong, I belong to You!

~ Kathry Scott