“Just Ask”
1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14, as rendered in The Message
Reading scripture, much like all elements of the spiritual life, can be a humbling enterprise. Just when we think we have it all figured out, just when we’re sure our theology has evolved to the point that we become downright dismissive of other, less nuanced theologies, something comes along that reminds us that there is really no such thing as “figuring God out.”
The question then becomes: Are we willing to consider that our views might need still more tweaking? Given that the Holy One is, ultimately, a sacred mystery, are we willing to open our hearts and minds yet again, and then commit ourselves to always keeping them open?
These are some of the questions I asked myself last week as I considered our scripture lesson from the Hebrew Bible. Over the years I have become somewhat adamant about insisting that God is not Santa Claus or some holy genie in a bottle or lamp. I have tried to be clear in saying that prayer should be far more than a laundry list of complaints or a wish list of desires.
But right there in our scriptures, in the book of First Kings, God comes to the brand new king of Israel—Solomon, the son of King David and Bathsheba—and, acting a lot like a genie or a shopping mall Santa Claus, says, “What can I give you? Just ask.”
Well.
And so it is that my first reaction to, this story was that, “Well, maybe sometimes God is like a genie or Santa Claus wanting to grant our wishes or fulfill our desires.”
But the second thought I had is even more important: To more fully understand what God is like and to more joyfully engage the mystery that is God, maybe I need to think beyond my own frame of reference.
Because some people, based on their life experience, would say that any being who comes to us wanting to give us something sounds a lot like a good and loving parent or an attentive partner or a caring friend. Someone else, reading the story through their personal lens, might say that thoughtful, engaged, and generous giving is exactly what Love does.
The one who disparages those who would see God as some kind of imaginary wish granter have, perhaps, not had much experience with real people who long to provide for those they love and who want to know what their children, partners, or friends most want or need.
But that doesn’t mean God isn’t like that. Nor does it mean that God isn’t much, much more than that.
So I’m grateful for this story and how it encourages me—and maybe all of us—to expand our ideas about God.
I’m grateful for this story, and how it encourages me—and all of us— to consider what we would ask God to give us.
I’m grateful for this story and how it encourages us to think about prayer. Yes, it invites us to go to God with our worries and our needs, our troubles and our fears, our true feelings, our deepest longings, and our greatest hopes. And it also encourages us to get to know and trust our steadfastly loving, extravagantly generous, and passionately present God—and to pay attention to all the many ways God wants to love us.
It seems to me that’s how Solomon lived. The scripture says that Solomon loved God—he loved God so much that simply worshipping God in Jerusalem was not enough. His love was such that Solomon worshipped God wherever he went, and not in a superficial or showy way, but with sincere devotion and honor.
And so it was that one night, when Solomon laid down to sleep, the God he served with great passion, the God whose love for us is longer and wider and higher and deeper than we can imagine, appeared to him in a dream and said, “What can I give you? Just ask.”
Solomon responds with one of the most beautiful prayers in scripture.
He begins with thanksgiving and praise, recalling how generous and faithful God was to his father David.
Solomon continues with more praise, humility, and honesty.
All I am and all I have is thanks to you, he tells God.
That’s really great, God, Solomon says, and I can’t begin to thank you enough, but, but, but . . . I don’t know how to be a king! I can’t do this job on my own. I need your help!
So here’s what I want, plain and simple: Wisdom.
Now, I don’t about you, but if Genie-in-a-Bottle/Santa Claus God asked me what I wanted? . . .
I’m not sure “wisdom” would be at the top of my list.
But Solomon was, apparently, already wise enough to know that wisdom was the thing he needed most in his new role as king.
Now, it’s important for us to understand that Solomon wasn’t asking for street smarts or even to know everything there is to know or what’s the best thing to do in every situation.
The Hebrew word used here for wisdom means a listening heart, an open heart that listens so closely and intently for the word and heart of God that it is able to discern what is right.
When he could have asked God for anything, Solomon asked God for the capacity to hear and follow the loving and caring ways of God. And nothing, it seems, could have made God happier. Because our Creator wants nothing more than for us and all creation to live into the fullness and truth of who we were made to be. Because the one who created us in the very image of God wants nothing more than for us to live into our divinity, to be agents of love, healing, justice, and peace. Because prayer is not magic, but an invitation to Spirit to have its way with us.
If we pray for patience, it is likely we will begin noticing opportunities to be patient.
If we pray for courage, we’re probably going to be given some opportunities to act courageously.
If we pray for close families or meaningful relationships, our eyes and hearts may be opened to opportunities to love the people in our lives.
If we pray for wisdom, we’re likely to become aware of how much we need it.
The story of Solomon suggests that one of the surest ways to become the person we want to be and have the kind of life we want to have is to pray for an open, humble, and listening heart. To ask God for the big stuff—and then keep our hearts and eyes open—and to trust God for the rest.
When I visit someone in the hospital or at their home or at their deathbed and the time comes to pray, I usually ask them what we should pray for. And I can’t tell you how many times a sick or dying person has wanted to pray not for themselves but for some heartbreaking situation somewhere in the world, or for another person or family.
It blows me away every time because I sense the Spirit of God at work in the capacity of the human heart for compassion.
Friends, I won’t pretend to know exactly how prayer works or how the Spirit of God moves in our lives and in our world—but I will say I believe that there is power in the self-awareness, vulnerability, and willingness required to pray for something. I’m not going to try to explain why some prayers seem to go unanswered, and I’m not going to minimize or deny the pain and struggle we feel when it seems the answer to our prayers is “no.” And I’m certainly not going to suggest what you should pray for.
The flip side of people in need wanting to pray for someone else is, sadly, our tendency to discount our own hopes and desires. I can’t tell you how often people have said to me, “Oh, [whatever it is they need or want] isn’t important,” or worse yet, “God has bigger things to worry about than my problems.”
Beloveds, if you take away nothing else from Solomon’s story or this sermon, I hope it will be this: That God wants nothing more than to be connected to you. That in every moment of your every day, from flashes of profound joy to experiences of sublime beauty and times of grief, fear, exhaustion, confusion, and despair and all the mundane moments in between, the God who is Love wants to give you what you need. That in every moment of your every day, the Great Mystery we call God is extending to you the very best invitation:
Just ask, it says.
Just ask.
