John 14:14 tells us that "If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it." So does that really mean that I can ask for a private jet just because I want one and God will give me one?
I remember my friend once telling me a story of how his 5-year-old son asked for a real, live horse so that the young boy could become a cowboy. Instead of buying him one, my friend took his son to a range to show him what a real horse looked like. Upon seeing for himself how big, strong and smelly the horse was, my friend's son could only respond by saying, "I don't want to be a cowboy anymore, daddy."
The prevalent thought that plagues many Christians today is this idea of God being a magic genie who grants us the wishes of our hearts without weight or consequence. The flaw in this idea is the placement of who is master and who is the follower.
In every season, Jesus is Lord and therefore He is in charge. Having this clear sheds more light on the concept of "asking for whatever we want." When we truly understand that Jesus is Lord and that His will is not only sovereign but also works for the good of those who love Him, we will seek His purpose alone before asking for anything.
The flaw in thinking John 14:14 is permission from God to make the longest Christmas wish list possible begins because people who read the Bible forget that it was never written to them. When Jesus said these words, He wasn't saying this to all Christians in all of time. He was saying it to a handful of disciples who were looking for the way to God and therefore the way to His purpose.
When we literally ask for anything regardless of God's purposes, what good does that really do for us? Sometimes God refuses to answer prayers because He refuses to put ourselves in the danger that we sometimes so evidently put ourselves in. God will not give us a million dollars if He knows that it will only ruin our priorities. He won't give you your long-awaited lifetime partner when you can't even clean your own room yet.
James 4:3 reminds us, "When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures."
In great contrast to this, when we seek God's purposes first and then ask for His provision and providence, God's unlimited power follows us. His provision will always follow purpose. The same way a father will readily provide for a son or daughter who makes clear his or her intentions of using what was provided, God will do the same for us.
Matthew 6:33 reminds us, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
