The scripture tells us that when God originally made man (male and female) we were made in His image. Of course we understand this not to mean a physical image, rather a non-physical one, where we have attributes similar to His in emotions, will and intellect. However it seemed that when our forefathers Adam and Eve disobeyed the Lord, that image was tarnished. It seems that we are driven by "What is in it for me", or as some would say listening to WIIFM station. Eve demonstrated this WIIFM when she took hold of the forbidden fruit and bit into it. We sometimes condemn Eve and say, if we were in her shoes we would not have done what she did. But stop again and take a hard look. Do we not do the same thing? The manner in which we attempt to satiate our desires may be different, but the motive is still the same. We see this so much in our prayers, as we rush and plead with the Lord to do things for us to satisfy our desires. We are driven to listening to our favorite radio staion, WIIFM. As Keith Green so eloquently writes in his music, our cry seems to be bless me Lord, bless me now, bless me. James, aptly stated it, when he said we have not because we ask not, and when we do ask it is for self consumption.

The scripture tells us that the Lord wants the best for us, but this is in accordance with His will. Too many of us have never invested in the time to discover what is God's best for me, much more to pursue it. We treat the Lord as a genie, contained in a bottle to be rubbed to get Him to do our bidding. When He does not appear, or fail to do what we request, we rub the lamp even harder and sometimes solicit others to rub the lantern with us. We readily see this in times of crisis, where our comfort zones have been disturbed and our fallen image comes into play.

Again the scriptures, remind us that the Lord does not hear sinners, as our sins separate us from Him. However once we have repented of our sinful state and believe on (trust, total reliance) on Jesus Christ, His Son for the forgiveness of sins (God's wrath is removed from us) we become His children. This elevated position in our relationship with the Lord allows us to call Him Father, Daddy (Abba). We are given the freedom to ask boldly knowing that He will hear and respond to us in due season. This is a conditional response spelt out for us by Jesus in John 15, If my words abide in you and you abide in me, then you will ask whatever you will and it shall be done unto you such that the Father is glorified.

So as we pray and seek the Lord, we need to ensure that we are abiding in His Word, we are living His will and we are obedient to His desires. The radio station we listen to should always be playing this song" What's in it for Him". The Lord does respond favorable to us and delights in doing so, but we need to ensure that we are seeking His glory in doing so and that we are living (abiding) in His will and His word.

Glenn Stevens
Grace Cancer Care Team