Dusty

James 4:2


2........You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.

I was always wondering when God is all knowing and knows even before we pray what we are going to ask for, then why do we need to ask. ?

Rather than giving it to us before asking do you think that setting it up this way if we did not , we would never fellowship with Him ?

That is my thought and we would never get to fellowship with Him and He with us.

James 4:3


3.........When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

Do you think that James was saying that he means we would spend it on ungodly pleasures.?

We should ask with the right motives and can ask for those things that will give no pleasure because God wants us to enjoy that which honours Him.

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Ramsey

He is all knowing but you see He gave us Free Will !

Let's say you know a secret about someone but you don't want to tell them until they tell you. So you wait, and then when they tell you, you provide for them or so forth. Same with God, He wants us to worship and love Him.
Even us humans sometimes we wait for someone to ask of us before we provide even though we already know what they will ask of us, and if they ask with the right motives we'll do it happily

If He just did things His way then we no longer have Free will. Of course everything is His way and part of His master plan but as humans we just can't understand that nor feel that, therefore it is free will for us

And yep, you're right for James 4:3 yay !!
either ungodly pleasure or selfishness.

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Our God is the only Good
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forgivenWretch

As I see it...He desires that we do so, whereby we are willing & unashamed to honor Him, by bringing our issues before Him. It is an act of humility, and reverent respect.

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Does HOPE still exist? Yes, most definitely! As long as we are capable of believing, having desires, and dreaming, we will always have HOPE. God is my source of HOPE...what is yours?
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Dusty

Exactly because in James 4 : 10..... James says .....Those who honour God He will likewise honour and those who despise Him will be lightly esteemed ( 1 Sam. 2 : 30 )

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Whirlwind

God knows what you need, my friend.

What you want is a different thing.

What if I prayed for a sports car...and got it. What if I took it out on the highway to see how fast it could go. What if I ran head-on into a minivan carrying a traveling family. What if someone was hurt badly.

That wouldn't be for God's glory. That's why we're here, to make God happy. We owe that to Him, because He made us to love Him and to be loved by Him. We worship Him. Everything that we do should be for Him and to glorify Him - He doesn't just ask us for that; He deserves that from us.

Of course God knows what we need even before we ask Him, my friend. He's God. But much in the same way that a baby sometimes has to cry to be fed (even when the mother might know the baby's feeding schedule), we have to do a little work on our part.

By dropping down onto our knees and asking...we're admitting to our Father in Heaven that we know within our hearts that He is God. And by asking, we're telling Him that without Him we're nothing. We're weak and limited. He is forever strong.

He's not going to let us lay back on a day-bed and get everything that we want without lifting a finger. He's not going to send us angels to hand-feed us grapes off the vine while we lay back and chortle, hee hee.

He has given us certain abilities, they're His gift to us. He wants us to use those abilities and to keep one thing in mind: We're here to love Him, to worship Him.

We're here to glorify Him as our God.

Once we do that (and mean it), we begin to see that we're in need for nothing at all - as He'll provide it in bounty.

When I didn't believe, when I went against the current, I was homeless and living on the streets, my friend. I dove into dumpsters for my food. I wanted things for my own special purpose - to make other people see how important I could be.

When I stopped fighting and gave it up, when I made sure that everything that I did was for the glory of the Lord...that's when the suffering for me stopped. God gave me a house, a car, a good job. He filled my pantry with so much food that I couldn't close the cupboards anymore. He gave me enough to start sharing with people around me.

That's His glory. I tell people that I didn't do anything to make my life better - I deserve no credit at all. But God, in His great glory, deserves the praise and worship. If He can do this miracle in my life, He can do anything!

Anyway, God bless you!

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Dusty

Thanks Ramsey ..... very good examples. Our Heavenly Father knows our needs already and will supply them but He definately will not supply our greed and our selfishness.

I think as I focus on James , I am learning that James proves that even when you are feeling the most comfortable with the Lord .... He can still surprise you and change your world. James 1 : 17.....Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Our intimacy with God is His highest priority for our lives and He is the determining factor Who impacts our life. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

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brotherjesse

I believe that God wants us to grow and mature to the place that we can be able to understand what would be right to ask for. God works in us as we let Him. He never violates our free will. As a result we must ask Him to do what we need done. "You have not because... Ask and you shall receive..." Read a bio of George Mueller.

He always reserves the right to say no. He is always going to do what is right and just and He can simply deny the request.

I would also posit this: If we didn't ask God for specific things how can we know He actually did it? How could we be thankful and glorify Him for it?

BroJesse

smellycat

God owns all.if your dad has cream cakes would you ask him.?

Dusty

Yum yum ..... Yes I would . He He !!!!!! And yes you are right our God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Glory.

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Dusty

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