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James 1:5-8

Have you had times where you didn’t know what to do about a particular issue in your life? If you have, please know that you are not alone. God tells us through His Word to ask Him.

5) If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

We all have times when we don’t know what to do or how to do something. Sometimes, circumstances overwhelm us. James tells us we should take our confusion to God. I remember when we moved into our home we had ordered carpet for the living room. It didn’t come for what seemed to be a long time. At almost the end of my patience, I found myself giving thanks to God for getting the carpet in advance. This was a new concept for me. A few days later I answered the phone to hear, “We will bring your carpet out in two days and install it.” I learned a lesson here. We can seek help from God and thank Him in advance.

6) But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

As we seek God’s guidance, we have to pray in faith, believing in a loving God who will do what He says and will act in our best interest and give us what we need. Our needs usually override our wants. If we served a God who specialized in giving us what we want, we would be very selfish people. We have to believe that God knows what’s best for us. Anyone who doubts God is not anchored in Him. This person is like the dandelion that has gone to seed-one puff of air and the seeds are spread over the terrain.

7) That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;

Several years ago, a pastor asked us if a person who wasn’t a Christian prayed to the Lord, would God have to answer. Some one who is not rooted in the Lord should not think that God will answer his prayers. The Lord performs deeds for those who have faith in Him. If a non-believer has a need of prayer and he prays, others who believe would also pray for the need. God’s answer would come because of the requests of the believers.

In the mid 1990s, my dad had emergency heart by-pass surgery. My husband and I had taken him to a heart hospital for a second heart cath. The cardiologist came out and said, “We have to take your dad into surgery for a bypass procedure. Angioplasty (balloon procedure) will not fix the problem.”

Later that week, I spoke to a niece of ours (in my husband’s family). She offered her sympathy but she said something that amazed me. Her comment: I know God doesn’t hear the prayers of a sinner. For whatever reason, I didn’t respond to her words. Six weeks later, she went out into eternity. When our pastor asked if she was a Christian, I told him that she knew she was a sinner. I further commented that there were people who attended church regularly who didn’t know or admit it.

8) . . .he is a double minded man, unstable in all he does. James 1:5-8

A person who flits from one idea to another like a butterfly is unfaithful before the Lord. This person has to learn about faith and obedience before God.

God has ways of allowing our faith to grow. From our perspective, we call them tests, trials or tribulations. He sends us to the valleys, where we are more willing to listen to Him. A saintly woman once put it this way; “When we are in the valleys, we are the most teachable.”

Some of the many lessons, I have learned in my valley experiences have been contentment, patience, kindness, faithfulness, respect for others.

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Scripture is taken from the New International Version

"The Way" from Kevin Pauley

A World of One