Jesus Knocking

Written by Vanessa Lancaster on Thursday of the Second Week of Lent

How often do we feel that our prayers go unanswered? That we are praying the same prayers in a state of waiting? During this time when we may feel unclear as to what it is God has planned for us, we are called to trust. God knows our hearts much more than we will ever know them and he loves us with a love that cannot be conceived by our own minds.

Healing services here at St. Mary’s have always been experiences where I have felt this deep connection with the Lord and the love he has for me. At the beginning of this year, I came to one not knowing what to bring to the prayer team. Through this confusion and uncertainty they told me, “He hears all of your prayers and he needs you to know he will answer them all in his time.” This phrase is what came to my mind after reading today’s Gospel. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find knock and the door will be opened to you” – Matthew 7:7

Though I may be the world’s least patient person ever, I have found a way to think of prayer when I am waiting on how God wishes to answer: Your prayers are like a baby in your womb. God plans to answer these figuratively in nine months. If this baby comes early, or you force it on a different path so that it can come early, the baby will not be healthy. In other words, the preterm baby is not God’s best path for you and is not a favorable outcome for those bearing children. We must wait and we must trust in God’s plan that is created out of love and in a way that we can glorify His name.

Suggestion for Prayer:
Bring your heart to God; place your heart in God’s hands. For God has plans for you and for your prayers. Ask God to help you see other’s through His eyes, but also for other’s to see you through His eyes.

“A clean heart create for me, O God; give me back the joy of your salvation” – Psalms 51: 12A, 14A

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Vanessa Lancaster
Vanessa is a junior in the Nursing School at U of M. She is originally from Richland, MI and is the President of Catholic Campus Community working as St. Mary’s Intern for Outreach and Engagement.
Email: lancastv@umich.edu