Ask and Receive

by Karl Newman

Have you ever been stuck in a bad situation? Have you been stressed beyond what you can handle because every choice in front of you looks awful? Do you ask a friend for advice? Do you talk with your parents? Do you make the best of it and hope it all works out?

Talking with parents and friends who follow the Lord is a good idea but there is an even better place to start whenever you don’t know what to say or do. God promises to give us wisdom every time we ask.

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. | James 1:5-8

The day after Jill and I were married we went to Mexico. We spent our days at the beach, swimming in the surf, beach walking, sitting in the sun reading novels. It was great. Every day beach vendors would approach to offer Jet Ski rentals, jungle tours or parasailing. The air was filled with the hum of the vendors’ voices and the roar of machines bringing good times.

Sunday was different. When we arrived at the beach everything was quiet. No vendors, no rumbling Jet Skis, no sailboats or banana boats, no parasails hanging in the air like bright tropical flowers drifting in the wind.

It was Sunday. And Sunday was family day in Mexico and a hard-earned day off too.

There were small red flags flapping in the quiet breeze, planted in the sand all along the beach that day. We asked a few people and found out the flags were a riptide warning. Riptides are a dangerous current that runs away from shore, cutting through the waves like a river. Riptides, sometimes called rip currents, can kill you by dragging you out to sea past the breakers no matter how hard you swim.

As we walked along I noticed an eight-year old boy getting pretty far out in the waves. I stopped and said “Hey! Be careful buddy, there’s a riptide here. Don’t go out past your knees.” He nodded, said, “OK” and came back toward shore. I added “Let me know if you need any help.” He nodded again and we walked on.

Seconds later he yelled “Hey mister! Help!” I turned to see that he was caught in the current and it was pulling him away from the beach fast. He was thrashing to keep his head above water. I ran into the water after him, then dove in and swam as fast as I could, grabbing him just before he was swept out of reach.

But all was not well. I was up to my chin and the ground I was standing on was quickly eroding. The riptide was gripping and pulling me, and the sand under me, ferociously away from the beach. “Get on my back,” I yelled. He did and held on tight. I swam as hard as I could but my slow progress toward the beach wasn’t enough. I was burning out and we both would be dragged out to sea.

Just when I thought we weren’t going to make it, the boy’s dad saw what was happening and charged into the waves. He was tall and able to stand with his head above the water a short distance away, just out of the current. I tossed the boy to his dad and then swam with all of my strength. Finally, I was out of the riptide and back on my feet, standing in chest-deep water after what seemed like forever. I was exhausted.

I didn’t know it but Jill had jumped in too and, as I looked to my right, she was in the riptide now and struggling hard toward the beach. In spite of her best swimming, she was moving steadily backward toward the open ocean and would be out of reach any second. My first instinct was to swim over to her as fast as I could. Maybe it would be shallow enough for me to stand and I could get us both out.

I should have prayed sooner but it’s never too late to ask the Lord for help. I asked God to show me what to do. I wanted to swim to Jill. But I didn’t. Instead I shouted, “Swim to me, not to the beach!”

She slowly closed the distance. Once she made it to me, we hung on to each other as I hauled us one slow motion step at a time toward the beach, until she could stand on her own.

I had resisted the impulse to go to her and that decision saved both of our lives. What we didn’t know then is that riptides form funnels and the only way to get out is to swim sideways, parallel to the beach, not toward the shore.

We didn’t know it, but God did.

If I had raced to save Jill instead of having her swim to me, we both would have died that day. We already were worn out and all we could do is swim until we couldn’t swim anymore while the current relentlessly took us out past the breakers.

It was Sunday. There were no Jet Skis, no rental kayaks, no catamarans, no parasailing boats to pull us out of the deep water after we were dragged out to sea.

It was Sunday. And it was God’s day to answer our prayer for wisdom in a huge way.

In the years since then, James 1:5-8 has become my life verse. God is faithful to his promises in these verses. I can tell you story after story of not knowing what to do or say and praying for wisdom then watching God do amazing things through me that are beyond my knowledge, training, gifts or abilities.

These verses say that God gives wisdom generously to all who ask without finding fault! We don’t have to be good enough or deserve it in any way. Let me say it again, he gives generously to all who ask without finding fault.

Anytime you need help or have a big decision in front of you, ask God for wisdom. God will help you with any and every question or situation: Will I go to college? Where? How do I find a job? Should I accept this job offer? What do I say to my friend who I offended? And he is with you and ready to give you wisdom as you get older and have other decisions to make: Should I buy this car, marry this person, take this promotion, move to a new home or city?

God cares about every part of your life and will give you wisdom to navigate difficult times if you just ask. But pay close attention to the rest of the passage. “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.”

How do we believe and not doubt? By praying for wisdom, trusting we have it and taking action. You can pray for wisdom about college then gather information, talk to parents and friends who follow the Lord. Then make a decision trusting that God has given you his wisdom.

Life’s trials, opportunities and challenges are like the waves of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. Sometimes they are like riptides, threatening and relentless. God is there with you in and through all of it, and he will gladly give you wisdom to make your way to solid ground.

Ask and receive. All you have to do is ask.