God isn't this cosmic Santa Clause ready to shower us with gifts that bring us lots of joy, but God is like a loving dad who desires to know how he can meet you where you're at.

7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! Matthew 7:7-12

We live in a game show culture where we've come to expect the big toy behind door number 1, or the world wind cruise behind the letter 'A' or the million dollars behind the lotto ticket we just purchased. Anything short of that means feeling sorry for ourselves because we're poor; despite the reality of having a roof over our head, a car to drive, a bus to take, and two large grocery stores within blocks from each other, and a job  that helps us pay for those things.

In this era of luxury, we've become accustomed to having a life of leisure without thinking about the ramifications of what might happen to our society if EVERYONE  stopped working and instead sat on the beach drinking margarita's?.

Is there any wonder our spiritual lives grow cold, the well within  us stays empty even though we have this stuff?

It's all in the  words we use when we pray to the heavenly father. If we were to see God as a loving earthly father, instead of a cosmic Santa Clause, we just might see ourselves plugged into the very source that keeps us going, going and going.

One of the many blessings as  a dad is slowly realizing what all this means. As a dad, my greatest time is when my son comes to me with his heartfelt concerns.  It is those moments I  listen to him, and pray. , I am reminded of these words from Matthew 7:7-12:7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."

Just as I derive my greatest joy in having my children come to me with their worries and concerns, just think how much more meaningful when we call out to the God in heaven with our worries and our concerns?

It is often  when we are in the midst of suffering that we truly understand this verse. It is when we cry out to God when the EMT called the time of death, or the pink slip arrived in the mail that we cry out for God to rescue us and meet us where we're at. 

 We're not asking for the fancy car behind door number one or the cruise behind the letter 'A' or that the lotto ticket be a sure winner, but we are simply asking God to help us recover from the  depths of our pain by meeting us where we're at.

As I read about the conversion stories of former Muslim's turned followers of Christ, I am reminded that God hears their heartfelt cries for help in the midst of their pain. For many, He is choosing to reveal himself to the un-reached in their dreams.

So, the next time you pray to the God in heaven remembers it isn't what you say, or how polished your words are when you pray, but the heart felt meaning behind those words you use.

 In many ways, we can learn from our Christian brothers and sisters in the poorer countries. They may not have much in the form of material possessions, but their hearts are  filled with the joy of the Lord because he met them where they're at.

As you drive to work this morning say a word of thanks for your job, for the strengths you bring to your job and ask God to bring a blessing to your co-workers, like an encouraging word or  a bagel bunch from Panera's or Brueggers. 

 If you have a roof over your head, access to transportation, you have been incredibly blessed!