Matt 7:7-11
Ask and it shall be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him….
The old man walked with his grandson down the dusty track at the back of the property to the rickety old shed. Within the gloom of the shed, dust motes danced on pieces of light that escaped through cracks in the weathered timber, illuminating a large, elongated crate. Laying his gnarled arthritic hand on top of the crate, the old man turned to his grandson and told him the following story….
“When I was in my teens, about the same age as you, I desperately wanted a Pontiac GTO. At the time it was the most sought-after car a young man could possess. I approached my father asking him for this most prized item. Not a day went by when I didn’t manage to bring my request before my father. I was relentless in my asking. And my father had the patience of a saint, he listened each time I went before him, even though he knew what I was going to say.
Then one day a huge truck arrived on the property with a very large wooden crate on board. This crate,” and the old man tapped the wooden lid and ran his hand over its timber.
“The crate was offloaded into the shed. I asked my father what was in it.
My father replied, it’s your car, but it’s in 10,000 pieces, and you will need to build it.
I was both excited and devastated.
You see, I had dreams of just being able to get into a shiny vehicle and driving away.
I certainly didn’t expect to have to work at it.
Well, the crate sat untouched in the shed, year after year. I would walk by it and shake my head at the perceived task of putting it all together. It was too overwhelming a thought, so I’ve never picked up a crowbar to prise open the crate and see what is inside.”
With that, the old man turned to his grandson and said, “I give this to you. If you build the car, you can have it.” Then he shuffled out of the shed, and back down the dusty track.
The boy was moved by the generosity of his grandfather and picked up a crowbar to slip under the lid of the crate.
He worked at the lid easing the rusted nails out of the timber.
When he had worked his way completely around the crate, he pushed the lid to one side.
In the crate was a dusty, but complete Pontiac GTO.
It had been there all along.
The father had given exactly what the son had asked for, but the son had missed out on it completely.
We are always heard by our Father, and He gives appropriately, but sometimes what we ask for does not come in the form we expect, or imagine, or hope for, because our Father knows what is best for us, and sees the bigger picture.
We are given what we ask for, but sometimes we just need to be willing to unwrap it or we may entirely miss the blessing.
Carole