Are You Seeing Stars?
Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. – 1 John 5:14-15 NKJV.
Eighteen-year-old Kimberley Vlaminck is seeing stars; at least she sees them whenever she looks in a mirror. She is seeing stars in the mirror, because she now has 56 stars tattooed on her face. Kimberley claims that the tattoo artist at the Tattoo Boy shop in Courtrai, Belgium misunderstood her, because of his poor command of English and French. Kimberley went to sleep while the artist was working and woke up seeing stars. Kimberley in tears said this about her condition, “It is horrible, he has turned me into a freak. I can’t go out on the street now without people looking at me.” However, the tattoo artist Rouslan Toumaniantz says that Kimberley “got what she wanted.” Rouslan also indicated that Kimberley only became upset after her Dad became angry and her boyfriend left her. Kimberley is now suing so that she can obtain the funds necessary to have the stars removed from her face.
In life, it is true that sometimes we get what we ask for, and when we do; the result, the outcome is sometimes very bad. Spiritually, we can always have a good outcome by seeking and asking according to God’s will. We can have “confidence” that if we ask “anything according to His will” that we will receive what we “asked of Him.” God loves you so much that Jesus suffered and died for you (John 3:16). Of course, God wants the very best for your life. Of course, God’s will to be done in your life is the very best thing that could happen because, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:9).”
How often though do we turn in every direction except to God when we have needs? You need a job and so without any prayer you immediately start contacting friends, networking, sending out resumes, and filling out applications. You are facing the prospect of having your electricity turned off because of failure to pay for it, or you are unable to pay for your medications, or feed your family – so what do you do? Rob a bank?
What does Jesus say in Matthew 6:33? “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness….” Everything in our lives should be bathed in prayer. Before you jump to conclusions and in your desperation wake up seeing stars you ought to first…PRAY! Before you give up on ever having meaning and purpose in your life you should first…PRAY! Before you take that jump and do something crazy, take some time to…PRAY! Before you give in to your addiction as being something that is impossible to overcome…PRAY! Before you have someone give you 56 star tattoos on your face, maybe you ought take a moment and…PRAY!!!! As the apostle Paul puts it, we ought to “pray without ceasing (pray continually – NIV) in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you (1 Thessalonians 5:17-18).”
(To avoid the unpleasant consequences of bad decisions there is something that we should always do before making a decision.)