He Owns the Cattle on a Thousand Hills...but will He ever run out?

Recently in my time with God I was praying about a rather pressing thing, and God pressed me further to explore a way of thinking that needs to be changed. I am beyond stressed about finances right now, and though I've seen him provide for a recent mission trip, as well as for all of the gas money to drive to my brother's wedding, I find it hard to ask for the regular things, like car payments and insurance.

As I was praying this morning, He challenged me in my thinking. Here's how it used to go: If I ask for something now, and it was set aside for later, I will be robbing myself from having it for later, and asking for the need to be met in the wrong time.

Here's what I heard God saying: "You have not because you ask not." "I own the cattle on a thousand hills." "I am able to do more than you could ever think to ask or imagine possible." These are right out of scripture!

Now I'm not traveling down the path of expecting that as a Christian I should be rich. Jesus wasn't anything near financially wealthy. What I am saying is that when I come to God and ask for help, I go back to how my family was and seek Him with the understanding that if I ask now, and He says yes now, I'll have to hear no later.

Again, God responds to this: When I ask for God to provide where I can't, and I see His provision, it should empower me to come before Him more boldly in the future knowing that His mercy never runs dry, and that He is the Creator, owner, and giver of all good gifts. He delights to know we are His children and that we seek Him to be our Father in heaven. He delights to know that we talk to our friends and tell them of His work and love for us, on our behalf, in His perfection. He delights to have us simply rest in His arms thankfully for His tender care.

Take-away? I'm trusting God to move in a mighty way to answer my prayers. I believe He has enough to cover the things I cannot do right now, and He has much more in store for me than I could ever have imangined. I have asked for His provision, and I ask you to pray for me as well. I know the old ways of thinking will be difficult to break, but I will continue to pray and ask that God will make in my mind a new way of thinking that comes in line with His character of faithfulness. My encouragement for you? Trust Him. Really dig hard when you pray and understand that God will likely change the way you think about prayer and His faithfulness, and listen for His answer. I spent an hour listening yesterday morning, and not until today did I hear what He would say to me. Maybe my ears were clogged, maybe I needed to journal my prayers to let Him move my hand, maybe there was a battle going on in the heavenlies that prevented the answer from coming right when I thought it should. One day as compared to three weeks? Those angels must have been powerful to have gotten here so quickly. Either option, God answers, and I'm glad He does so tenderly!