“Now, Lord my God...give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings.
1 Kings 3:9-13
Prayers are often “give me” conversations with God...
“Lord, “give me” a good job, or a loving spouse, or obedient children, or a better car, or...whatever we want at the time. Generally we phrase it in a less demanding way. Like, “I need...” or, “if it be your will...” If we learn anything from this incident with Solomon it should be “Lord, give me” is not a problem for God. No need to be obsequious with God because He perfectly discerns our motives and agendas.
Just come out with it...
Like Solomon did...“Now, Lord my God...give your servant a discerning heart.” I suspect Solomon was overwhelmed by his new responsibilities and knew he was not up to the task. If God didn’t step in, he would fail. In effect, he was saying, “I have no idea what I’m doing so...since you gave me the task...give me the tools.” And, “The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this.”God said “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself...I will do what you have asked...Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor.”
There are some important lessons here...
1. Effective prayer is predicated on Our relationship with God. Solomon demonstrated his love for God. Solomon showed he loved the Lord by following the commands his father David had given him, except many other places of worship were still used to offer sacrifices and to burn incense. King Solomon went to Gibeon to offer a sacrifice, because it was the most important place of worship. He offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.
2. Effective prayer is predicated on our regard for God’s authority. When God came to Solomon and offered to fulfill his desires Solomon said “You were very kind to your servant, my father David. He obeyed you, and he was honest and lived right. You showed great kindness to him when you allowed his son to be king after him. Lord my God, now you have made me, your servant, king in my father’s place.” In other words, God, this entire situation is your doing...not mine.
3. Effective prayer is predicated on our dependence upon God. In this case, Solomon understood he was faced with a daunting responsibility that had been placed upon him By God, Himself. While he was at Gibeon, the Lord appeared to him in a dream during the night. God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”Solomon answered, “You were very kind to your servant, my father David. He obeyed you, and he was honest and lived right. You showed great kindness to him when you allowed his son to be king after him. Lord my God, now you have made me, your servant, king in my father’s place. But I am like a little child; I don’t know how to do what must be done.”
4. Effective prayer is predicated on our bringing God pleasure. The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked this. So God said to him, “You did not ask for a long life, or riches for yourself, or the death of your enemies. Since you asked for wisdom to make the right decisions, I will do what you asked. I will give you wisdom and understanding that is greater than anyone has had in the past or will have in the future. I will also give you what you did not ask for: riches and honor.”
The obvious question we need to ask is...does my experience with prayer compare with Solomon’s? For most of us the answer is a resounding “no.” Yet, we somehow tend to put that responsibility on God, rather than ourselves, and end up thinking prayer is largely a waste of time. It’s not. God finds pleasure in answering our prayers but on His terms, not ours. James 4:3 says “when you pray, your prayers are not answered, because you pray just for selfish reasons.” God also knows what we need and is prepared to provide it. Hebrews 4:16 says “Let us have confidence, then, and approach God's throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it.”
We can go through life grumbling, with disappointment over how God failed us or we can align ourselves with God’s design for accessing His benevolence. It shouldn’t be a difficult choice.
Live boldly out there today...
