You know that you heard the voice of the Lord, but now everything has fallen apart...the promise is shattered... did you really hear from God?

The symptoms in your body seem to keep getting worse.  Every day you feel sicker.  The doctor keeps finding more complications.  It drags on and on... will there ever be an end to this?

You're confessing the Word, you're being diligent on the job, being wise in your financial affairs, tithing and giving offerings - but no matter what you do, problems still overwhelm you... I thought God wanted us BLESSED - what has gone wrong?

Questions... desperate, earnest questions turning over and over inside us, crying out for answers. We go through them again and again, but still there is no solution.  Could it be that we don't find the answers to our questions because we're looking for them in the wrong place?

Yes. If we are not finding answers, then we are definitely looking in the wrong place.

We will never find the answers to our questions by looking within our selves.  No matter how long and how hard we search or try to reason our situation out, we will never arrive at a satisfying answer - because it just isn't there.

While we've been busy trying to figure out our crisis, God has been present all along with the answers.  The whole time He has been saying - just Ask Me... just ask Me and I'll show you the answer to that problem.

In Jeremiah 33.3, the Lord said - "Call to Me and I will answer you.  I'll tell you marvellous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own."

He said, Call to Me and I WILL answer you.  He didn't say, Call to Me and I may or may not answer you.  No.  He said He WILL answer, and WILL tell you marvellous, wondrous things you could never figure out on your own.

God is saying - "Ask Me".  When we have a need, when we feel confused, all we have to do is remember to Ask Him.  He won't leave us in the dark about anything we're going through.  If we'll ask Him and then listen to Him, He will settle our heart and tell us what we need to know.

We should never be afraid of asking God about the things that concern us, nor think that it wouldn't do any good to ask Him.  Those are both lies from satan to alienate us from the truth and the answers we seek.

God is not bothered by our sincere, heartfelt questions.  If we have a question, He wants us to ask Him.  He doesn't laugh at our questions and He doesn't hold out on us, either.  There is no deceit in God.  He will not ever trick you.  If there is anytime a question that He doesn't want you to know the answer to, even then He will not shun you.  He will let you know that that's not something He can tell you, and He will put you at such ease about the whole situation that you'll be satisfied not to know!

Every thing about God is completeness.  There is no such thing as a void in the presence of God.  When you live in God, He makes you complete.

Psalm 138.8 says that the Lord will complete that which concerns us.  Not only will He complete what concerns us, in the sense of what pertains to us - but He will also complete what concerns, or troubles us in mind and heart, as we take those things to Him.     [For further study on this topic, see Rev Sharah's article -  God, this concerns me (© 2005) - online at  www.ps27fr.org ]

We're to take our concerns to God, instead of just letting them eat away at our insides.  He has all the answers.  There isn't anything beyond His ability to solve.

Rev. John G. Lake often said - "Is anything too hard [for God]?"  The answer, of course, is NO.  Nothing is too hard for Him.  In Jeremiah 32.27  God said - "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?"  No. Nothing is too hard.

Luke 1.37 AMP tells us that With God, nothing is ever impossible, and no word from God is without power or impossible of fulfillment.  What's more, Jesus said all things are possible to him who believes!!  (Mark 9.23)

So nothing is too hard for God and nothing is too hard for you if you BELIEVE.

God has answers to even the most difficult questions - and He will tell them to you if you will ask Him and believe Him.

One of the most beautiful covenant promises God ever made is recorded in the last three verses of Psalm 91.  There He said that for the one who sets their "love on Me, I will deliver him; I will set him on high because he has known and loved My name.  HE SHALL CALL UPON ME, AND I WILL ANSWER HIM.  I will be with him in trouble;  I will deliver him and honour him.  With long life I will satisfy him and show My salvation [deliverance, victory, help, prosperity]."

We are not without the help we need.  These three verses alone cover everything you and I will ever face in life.  When we set our love on God, when we look to Him as our answer - He has committed Himself to deliver us, to exalt us, to be our help in any trouble we face, to answer us when we call on Him, and to honour, satisfy, bless, prosper, and pour out His goodness in every area of our life.

So many times we have missed the blessings and help God has for us because of the influence of religious tradition, which has taught that it's wrong to ask God for things.  Even if we don't really believe that lie, still the presence of that religious influence has tried to throw a cloak of condemnation over our heart where receiving the blessing of God is concerned.  And that is wrong.  He is our Father and we should never feel shame or condemnation about asking for His blessing.

In I Chronicles 4.9-10,  there is record of a man named Jabez.  Despite his name meaning "pain",  the Bible calls him an honourable man of God because of the prayer that he prayed: ------------------------------

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying - "Oh, that You would bless me indeed,  and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me,  and that You would keep me from evil,  that I may not cause pain!"  So God granted him what he requested.

Jabez asked,  and God answered.  He asked for God to bless him, and God did it.

God is ready and waiting to bless every one of us if we will ask Him and believe Him.  The Apostle James wrote that "you do not have because you do not ask."  (James 4.3)

Jabez asked and he received.  It appears that he was called "more honourable" solely because of his prayer.  So it is also with us.  It is our total dependence upon God and steadfast trust in Him that makes us honourable men and women of God.  All else flows from that.

I John 5.14-15 tells us that this is the confidence that we have in Him, that is we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we asked of Him.

Sometimes, it's this "asking according to His will" that stumps a lot of us.  And so, we decide not to even bother with asking at all!  But we shouldn't do that.  Maybe you don't know if what you wanted to ask is His will or not.  The course of action is still Ask Him.

He doesn't want us sitting there trying to figure out, on our own, what is His will and what isn't.  He's already worked all that out.  If we're uncertain of His will, all we have to do is ask Him.

The first thing He will usually tell us is to spend some time in His Word,  because that's the Answer Book.  And it's amazing just how many answers you'll find that you didn't even know existed in there, when you seek Him through His Word.

Beyond that, when you get into His Word, your spirit becomes more open and in position to receive counsel and insight by His Spirit.  Answers will suddenly begin flowing into your heart and mind, and it will bring joy and peace inside.  Jesus said,  "Whatever you ask the Father in My name,  He will give you.  ASK, and you will receive, that YOUR JOY MAY BE FULL."  (John 16.23-24)

Matthew 6.8 tells us that our Father knows the things we have need of before we ask Him.  Not just material things, but also answers and solutions to our inner questions and concerns.  He said to ASK, and it will be given to you;  seek, and you will find... for everyone who asks receives...     (Matt. 7.7-8)

The wonderful thing about it is that when we seek God, He will always exceed our expectations.  Ephesians 3.20 assures us that He is able to do (and will do)  exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think,  according to His power at work in us.  He has more blessings prepared for us than we could ever imagine.  But we must remember to ASK and receive.

So keep this in mind.  The next time you have a question - remember there's Someone Who so desires to answer it for you.

Listen deep within your spirit and hear your loving, faithful Father whisper -