"This, Lord, Or Something Better."

I was reading my Daily Guideposts 2011 this morning and found this quote. The author of the meditation I was reading said that this is how a friend of hers ends each prayer. How beautiful is that?

We think we know what we want, how we want certain situations to turn out, the blessings we want for family and friends. Christ has told us to ask, seek and knock, and so we do. We ask for more money, we ask for health, we ask for help getting this or that job that looks so great, and so on.

Often our prayers are not answered the way in which we would like. How long does it take us to see the answer and, often, get over the disappointment before we realize that the answer is so much better than what we were praying for in the first place?

If we go into the prayer seeking God's Will, we are less likely to be disappointed with the answer, especially if it is not exactly the one for which we were hoping. How wise this woman is to place all her needs before the Lord and yet be so open to His Will over her own.

When people ask me to pray for something specific, I often find that I have a hard time doing that because I know God may have a different answer. I try, instead, to pray for His Will. Now I have a way to pray for what others ask me to pray for and to pray for my own needs, as well, without feeling like I'm trying to go around the will of God in my asking.

Now I can end my prayers this way, too: "This, Lord, or something better!"