“If you never ask, the answer is always no.”
The first person I heard say this was talking to marketers about closing the sale. And then I thought about how it applies to our prayer life. James said:
“You do not have because you do not ask God.” (James 4:2)
More and more, I see asklessness as a major root to a good many of our problems.
True, James also said that we don’t receive because we sometimes ask with the wrong motives … but maybe the first part of the equation is the greater obstacle.
A good way to solve this problem is with pen and paper and time spent in solitude.
Write down the things in your life that you have been dealing with on your own, that you have (inexplicably) neglected to pray about.
Then make a decision to bring these matters before the throne every day until they’re resolved.
You and I both know from history that it works. Why we go through seasons of asklessness is a mystery for the ages.
© 2017/2026 Steve May. Today’s memo first appeared at Preaching Library.
