The Answer is...

~~~ Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25 ~~~ Psalm 138 ~~~ Matthew 7:7-12 ~~~ 

Ask~Seek~Find~Knock~Open

Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

During our entire life we never run out of things to ask God for...

What was the latest request you made of him?

During our entire life there is always something

 else we are seeking...

Are you seeking for something special today?

During our entire life we find many things...

How many things have we found when looking

 for something else?

During our entire life we knock on many doors...

some are opened, but some remain closed to us.

How many doors have you stood before?

Are there doors you are still hoping will open?

During our entire life many things are revealed to us 

by having an open heart.

Is your heart open to receive his word today?

Save us from the hand of our enemies;

turn our mourning into gladness

and our sorrows into wholeness.

Some may have thought Esther acted irrationally,

but she threw herself at the mercy of God.

She did everything in her power to save her people.

Queen Esther, seized with mortal anguish,

had recourse to the LORD.

We may not be seized with mortal anguish 

when we come to the Lord.

No need to wait until that happens to your heart.

Ask~Seek~Find~Knock~Open

We are Blessed with a God who invites us

 to come to him at any time.

He waits for us to ask, seek, find, knock and open.

He is the answer to all our desires.

~~~Peace~~~

Keep Knocking

 

~~~ Malachi 3:13-20b ~~~ Psalm 1 ~~~ Luke 11:5-13 ~~~

 

The fragrance of baking bread is almost intoxicating,
You cannot confuse it with any other smell.
Bread is a staple food in every culture.
It is used almost as another utensil...
we use it for sandwiches, to sop up gravy,
or to just enjoy it warm slathered with melting butter.

Baking in general but especially bread symbolizes hospitality.
Making bread requires few ingredients, but it does require patience.

At what hour of the night would you not
 be willing to open your door for your neighbor?

I remember a few years ago our son was driving home with a friend.
We did not know exactly what time he would arrive.
He finally showed up at the door in the wee hours of the morning.
We were so excited to see him even though it was way past our bedtime.
This was a joyful time this was our son coming home,
whom we had not seen in a couple years.

Today we are being invited to share this same
 sense of hospitality with our neighbor.

...if he does not get up to give him the loaves
because of their friendship,
he will get up to give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.

Perhaps the smell of the bread brought the neighbor to this door.
The first knock may have been easy to ignore.
Maybe the person would just go away.
But if the knocking persists we can no longer pretend we do not hear it.
 

 But for you who fear my name, there will arise
the sun of justice with its healing rays.

We are called to love our neighbor as ourselves;
what better way than through hospitality.
When was the last time you truly felt welcomed?
When was the last time you opened your heart to another,
welcoming them to journey with you?

 

 

Jesus tells us today through these very familiar words...
he is always with us....
He welcomes us with open arms of compassion, mercy, and love.
If we never seek him we cannot experience finding him.
Jesus is present yet he wants us to seek more of him;
so that when we do find him he can be generous to us.

 ...everyone who asks, receives;

and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

  

He is standing on the other side of the door waiting for us to seek him...
waiting for us to find him...
waiting for us to knock on the door.
Jesus is dying to open the door for you.
He is waiting to hear your knock on the door.
He is ready to shower you with his eternal hospitality.

Ask, Seek, Knock...Knock, Seek, Ask

Receive, Find, Open...Open, Find, Receive. 

 

Blessings in being persistent...
especially with God.
He is the Bread of Life.