Scripture Reading (God talks to you and me as follows): “If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” (John 15:7).
IF YOU WILL HEARKEN TO GOD’S WORD, HE WILL HEARKEN TO YOURS! Hearkening, heeding God’s Word, is the basis of His hearkening, His giving heed to your prayers. To listen to the speaking of His Word as you read it, with the intent of obeying what He tells you, stirs God to listen to your prayers with the intent of granting your requests.
The privilege of reading God’s Word prayerfully is fully available to you. As you read the Gospel of John, with such an attitude, you will soon realize why our Lord Jesus Christ gave us this astonishing commandment, “Abide in Me, and I in you” (John 15:4a). He longs for you to live inside Him, and He to live inside you. You can cocoon yourself inside Jesus, safe, protected from the tempter, while He takes full residence inside of you.
Then, as you continue prayerfully reading John 15, you will discover that in verse 7 our Lord repeats the same thought, but this time He gives you His Word to represent His Person. He wants you to consider His Word as Himself. Therefore, as you read God’s Word, you are reading the Lord Jesus Christ, you are reading God Himself. Now that makes the Bible unique, different from any other literature in the whole world. Reading the Scriptures in such a way that they abide in you, causes you to be with God Himself, enables you to have the experience of God, blesses you with the very presence of God. That should certainly encourage you to talk with God using the very words through which He is talking with you in His written Word. You will find yourself having a living conversation with the living and speaking God Himself! Wow!
How did you learn English? Well, it’s quite simple. When you were a baby, you heard Dad and Mom talking at home and began to understand a little of what they were saying, so you began trying to say the same words. Finally, one day you succeeded. Probably your first word was “no!” One day you said, “Mama” and your parents went wild with joy! Had you been born in Paris, of French parents, you would have spoken in French. Well, how do you learn to talk with God? Listen, hearken, heed His speaking to you in His Word! Then talk right back to Him, using the same words. When a new believer prays to God saying, “Father,” God is more thrilled than your parents were.
When you abide in Him and His words abide in you, you can ask for anything you want and He will give it to you. Honestly! He will!
Abiding in Him, living your life in Him, and letting His Word abide in you, live in you, causes you to only want what He wants. Then you can pray with full freedom, knowing with certainty that what you are requesting is God’s will and that it will be given to you. Your request will be granted.
You will not be like those who don’t have because they don’t ask. Nor will you be like those who ask but do not receive, because they ask amiss, to spend it on their lusts, their pride, their carnal and worldly desires. You will not be praying for a gold-plated Rolls-Royce. You will be praying for what pleases the Heavenly Father; you will be asking and receiving what He promises to give you.
As you read again John 15:7, don’t be surprised if you find yourself praying something like this:
Prayer (You and I talk to God as follows): “Lord Jesus Christ, thank You that You are longing for me to abide in You and You in me. When I was born-again I came into You to live inside You, to be always in You. You came into me, to live inside me, to always be in me. Thank You, that from eternity past You have desired to live inside me. Oh, I have opened to You, dearest Lord Jesus! You have come in! I have welcomed You! Keep making Yourself at home inside of me! Here I come! I come into You to live inside You, to be always in You. Thank You that You also have the same desire; to live inside me. Oh, I open to You, dearest Lord Jesus! Come in! Welcome! Make Yourself at home inside of me! May Your will be my will, Your desires be my desires! I have You! I want nothing besides what You want to give me. And in Your Word I find so much that You want to give me! Wow! And You assure me that as I abide in You and You abide in me, I may ask anything I want and You shall give it to me! Yippee! Lord, above everything else, I want to continually abide in You and You in me. I have made my permanent residence inside of You and You in me! I want to really major in this; our mutual abiding. You in me and I in You. I thank You for this! This is what I want. This is what I have! I want You and I have You! And I know that You want me and You have me! So I fully, freely, absolutely, totally, confirm that I have given myself to You! I am Yours! Yours forever! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
From Talking with God – Chapter 11