Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.”
NL Daily Devotion for Friday, June 7, 2024
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Jesus is God. So Jesus’ name is God’s name. Or one of them, at least. And here, we are told that if we ask something from God in Jesus’ name, we will receive it. But lots of people pray for lots of things and say, “In Jesus’ name” and then don’t get what they’ve asked for. A cure for their illness. A better job. A loving partner. The temptation is to use Jesus’ name as a kind of wishing talisman. And when it doesn’t work, where does that leave us in our belief about the power of God’s name?
I’m sorry but I don’t have any wisdom about this that won’t sound hollow to someone dying of cancer or who lost a child to tragedy or who can’t put food on the table. All I do know is that when I pray in Jesus’ name for guidance, for God’s presence, for courage and serenity, and pray in Jesus’ name that God would be God and I would turn over my pain and my grief and my fear, God does, in fact, answer. God shows up. Or, rather, God makes God’s presence known, for God is never elsewhere. It’s small comfort to someone whose need is far deeper than any I have experienced. But it’s all I have.
Do I believe that praying in Jesus’ name is more potent than any other prayer?
