I so enjoyed seeing my daughter Ann’s final “Step Sing” at Samford University. It’s a great campus tradition going back to 1951, and the shows are lots of fun.
We bought tickets for multiple shows, but the “highlight” is the final show Saturday night, where students have priority seats to watch their peers, and cheer them on. So to enable others the chance, a performer is limited to buying 2 tickets for that show.
So, being a Dad, I greatly desired to see her final show. As she told me the night prior, “Dad, I will always dance, because I love it and it is part of me, but this may be my last time to dance in front of a crowd.” She belonged to a local dance studio since preschool, and the image of it being a “last” did create feelings for all of us.
But, also as a Dad, I chose for my wife and other daughter to use our 2 tickets, and I planned to watch the livestream.
But given my desire to see it, and knowing that some families might not use all the tickets bought, I was prepared to stand out by the line (like people used to do at ballgames before e-tix became the norm, as it was for these shows) and ask anyone if they had extra. Then I could “scan in” with them. I had gone to the ticket site, and it showed sold out, as I already knew. I signed up for alerts for any tickets that became available, but never got an alert.
But, as we left for the night show, I said a short prayer. “Father, I’d really like to see this final show.” I don’t even remember the exact words after that, but something like “I pray that a way will manifest itself.” I know my Father’s heart for me. And the heart I have for my daughters is a result of knowing He loves me, and that He loves them even more than I do.
So, as my wife and daughter entered the theater, I walked up to an entry door. The attendant asked for my ticket, and I said “I don’t have one. But I noticed earlier, at this door, people who didn’t use all their tickets.” So I asked, “is there a way for them to turn those tickets back in?” He said, “I think some tickets were turned in. Check at the front. Good luck.”
So, I quickly went to “Will Call,” and said I wanted a ticket. She said, how many? One, I said. My heart leaps.
So, she sells me one. I go inside, and see my seat is maybe 15 rows from stage. The side of the stage my daughter is seen most prominently during their 6 minute dance.
As I heard the cheers of the students, I took time to thank the Father for me being there in an important moment for my child. I felt an infilling of love and gratitude. My Father had given me a gift.
James 1:16-17 says
“Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father.”
He gives good gifts. He is much better at that than we are. Jesus says “If you then, evil as you are, know how to give good and advantageous gifts to your children, how much more will your Father Who is in heaven [perfect as He is] give good and advantageous things to those who keep on asking Him! (Matthew 7:11 AMP)
Even though He gives great gifts, He says I need to ask!
The same Matthew passage says “Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you. For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8 AMP)
James 4:2 says we do not have because we do not ask. How often do we fail to ask? Some of us have adopted a viewpoint that to ask lacks humility, or something like that. But He tells us to ask. And to not stop asking!
In the parallel to Matthew 7, Luke 11 says
Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
“You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.” (Luke 11:5-13 NLT)
This parable has been much taught but little understood. Our Father wants us to ask Him for what we desire. And to do so without shame! He wants to answer, and give us things relating to His kingdom!
In next chapter in Luke, Jesus says “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.” (Luke 12:32 NLT)
In Mark 11:22-24,
Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.
We must believe, and pray from that position of faith. We should not expect to receive without that!
James 1:5-8 says
“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.” (NLT)
Paul shows us that our generous God gives “above and beyond.”
“When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:14-21 NLT)
Had I not asked if there were tickets, I would not have been in the audience for the “sold out” show (per Samford, the shows sold out the quickest in history).
But the real answer came from my Father who heard my simple prayer, the desire of my heart, to watch my child do something she loves for the final time.
Take note of Psalm 37:4-5
“Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.”
He tells us to ask. Don’t reduce your prayers to what is possible. Read Mark 9:17-29. He is the God of the impossible. He’s the God of making a way where there is no way.
In prayer, we say “Oh, we love you Father, for making us to commune with You, to be your agents, your ambassadors, of hope and love. Thank you for making us for Eden, for life in your Presence. And thank you for family!”
