If God were to grant you one wish, what would you ask for?

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Something? Someone? An experience? Healing? Finances? Physical attributes? A spouse? A child? A friend? A house? A truck? Peace? A relationship? A closer walk with God? Wisdom?

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Solomon got that wish in I Kings 3: 1-15. In I Kings, Solomon had recently assumed the throne of Israel from his father David. He followed in David’s footsteps and had pleased God in his short time as king. So, God came to him in a dream and offered him anything he asked for – money, wealth, fame, honor, etc. But instead of asking for something selfishly, this is what Solomon asked of God in verse 9: “…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?”  Instead of asking for himself, Solomon asked for something to benefit others.  

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As a result of Solomon’s selfless request, God gave him what he asked for and more. God said, “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.”

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Things didn’t turn out perfectly for Solomon. Though he was wise, he did not always act wisely, especially towards the end of his life, as he had many wives and concubines, built temples for foreign gods, and taxed the people unfairly. But he still serves as an example of someone who asked God with the right motives.

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I doubt any of us will ever be in Solomon’s position, either in his position of power or in a position to receive anything we ask for from God. But we are given the opportunity to ask God for things that are in accordance with His will. We can pray, but prayer doesn’t always appear to “work” (more on that in a bit). Today’s Scripture tells us that one reason we don’t have what we want is that we don’t even ask God for it. It also tells us that we don’t have what we want because we don’t ask for the right reasons.

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I struggle with that. Doesn’t it seem like asking for peace, for safety, for healing, for fertility, for reconciliation, for restoration are asking for the right reasons?  

It’s important to remember that James is not telling us how to pray prayers that “work.”  Instead, he was explaining why some prayers don’t “work.” In my family, we used to say that God is not a gumball machine – we don’t get to put in a prayer and get what we want. And James was talking to a church that was unhealthy, with fights and quarrels in its midst.  Evidently, many of those who did pray were praying with the wrong motivation.

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So, how should we live if we don’t know that prayer will work? That’s a trick question – prayer always “works.” I don’t understand how, but prayer always brings us closer to God, changes our heart, and sometimes, results in a “yes” that we get to see. However, prayer does not always result in an “yes” on our desired timeline, even if we think we’ve prayed for the right reasons.

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So, what should we do if we don’t understand how prayer works, or if we doubt that it does work?

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We should pray. Remember, we’re commanded to pray. I still don’t know how prayer works, and I don’t pray as I should, but we are commanded to pray without ceasing. Check out Philippians 4:6-7, Mark 11:24, Ephesians 6:18, I Thessalonians 5: 16-18 for just a couple of examples where we are told to pray, and pray continually.

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We’re also told to pray in accordance with God’s will.  Even Jesus submitted Himself to God’s will when He asked for the cup to be taken from Him. See Luke 22:42 for Jesus’ prayer, where ultimately God told Jesus, “No.”

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When we pray, we must trust in Him and wait on Him.  Proverbs 3: 5-6 and Jeremiah 29:11 encourage us to trust in God, and Psalm 27:14 says to wait on the Lord. The last bit is the hardest for me. I can pray, and I can ask God that I pray in accordance with His will, but I don’t like the waiting part.

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But like Solomon, it’s not supposed to be about me, is it? That’s what James was saying, and it’s what I’m still learning. How about you?