It wasn’t too long ago that I rejected the notion that you had to do your best in order for God to do the rest. Basically, I was reacting to the idea that God was somehow limited in helping people according to what people did or didn’t do. The phrase certainly isn’t found anywhere in the Bible. However, the more I considered it, the more I recognized that we have also a responsibility in getting our prayers answered. We aren’t our own source of blessings for sure, but we do play a part in the equation. It seems it is not natural nor does it fit within the reality of living life to think that we simply offer up prayers and then expect God to deliver what we need with no efforts on our part. And while “best” is certainly a subjective term, we do have some responsibility in pursuing the answers and results that we need. Do we need to do our best for God to meet our need or is it rather that we need to apply the necessary actions in accordance with what we are believing for God to do for us?
I’m sure you are all familiar with, “the secret” which proclaimed that all we needed to do to get our needs met was to manifest it in our thinking first. And while there is definitely some truth blended in there, functioning purely in this manner would seem to work against the laws God has already established. Results do not fall from heaven anymore than crops can appear without first sowing seed and then cultivating them. With God, there is always an expectation of effort on our part to acquire something we need. What God has promised in His Word is always there for us, but we need to expend the effort to find it. Our efforts do not produce it as that is God’s job, but our efforts are required to receive it. Sitting at home praying and praying for something doesn’t generally work well unless what we are praying for is beyond our human capability. God does not expect us to figure out how to heal ourselves, but he does expect us to pursue the solutions. Maybe we have to go to the doctor. Maybe there is something in our lifestyle that is causing us difficulties. Maybe there is another cause we have not yet considered. Thus naturally we go to God in prayer and then in our pursuit of good health, we listen to what He is teaching us and showing us. Similarly, praying to win the lottery or stumble across a fortune doesn’t produce results either. It’s like supplying your child with a hundred toys then being amazed that they play with the boxes instead. Too much too soon tends to overwhelm and not meet the need. God supplies what you can handle when you can handle it. You still have to do your part in order to get your needs met; in order to receive it.
Life requires effort. There is no realm of success or prosperity that does not involve effort. You are where you are that you may learn and that you may grow. If you do not have enough there is a way to get more but that way demands effort. Shirking your work on the grounds that your employer does not pay you enough violates principle. Good work, noble work, effort supplied to be the best and do your best cannot help but be rewarded. The reason someone is your boss is because they have supplied some effort as has their boss and their boss and so on. There is no limit to what you can do or what you can be if you will supply the effort. There will always be those who have manipulated and done wrong to get ahead, but those folks are almost always found out eventually. Praying to God to meet your needs is always the first step, but you must learn how to cooperate with Him to get what you want. If you believe God is doing something to help you, then you will naturally be doing things to find what He has promised you. In order to get a new job, you first have to apply for the job. Even then, you have to learn to leverage your skills to meet the requirements of the job. People don’t owe you anything in this regard. Praying and praying for a new job won’t alleviate you of this responsibility. But, when you are sincere in your effort and committed to get an outcome that God has promised you, you will find that God is always able to do exceeding abundantly above all that you ask or can even conceive. I should add that God is never making things harder for you or teaching you tough life lessons. Nor is He dragging you through hardships in order to make you a better person. That is not how God works at all. Instead He is endeavoring to teach you and lead you through the hardships you are facing in order for you to learn how to best live and enjoy life. God does need the working of evil to help you get better. God simply works with you where you are and can be counted on to remedy every hardship you have ever experienced with his endless love and compassion. Do your part and let Him do His part.
If you think about it, those things that are most important to you are always backed by effort on your part. If your child becomes ill, you will scourge heaven and earth for the solution. You would not function haphazardly nor would you apply minimal effort. I would surmise that you would not stop seeking and pursuing until you found the answer and if you could not find an answer would petition God the more. The same holds true for our lives. If it is important to you and matters very much, you will continue to pursue it until you find it. If it doesn’t matter much or you can take it or leave it, your efforts in this regard will match. God is always willing to help you. Your life is important to Him. What you need He wants you to have. God is never the hold-back ever. People that teach that God is withholding blessings from you or punishing you for past behaviors, do not know God. God wills that all men be made whole and come to a knowledge of the truth. God is more anxious to solve your dilemma than you are for Him to do it. The problem is usually found in the things we believe that aren’t true or else the lack of believing effort we supply towards our solutions. You and I have to supply our best efforts. We have to become very clear about what we need and then become very concerned about receiving it. When we apply that combination we find God’s solutions fairly quickly. God heard you the first time you prayed it! Do your best.
I’m still not sure if we have to supply our best for God to do the rest, but I am sure that we have to apply some effort to get the job done. What is it that you need or have been pining away for, for such a long time? What do you need in order to make your life complete? Don’t spend another moment waiting on God as God is waiting on you. Take action, any action! Do something. Get real serious about getting your need met and don’t leave anything to fate or chance. God wills for you to have what you need today. Get after it my friends. Do your best…
Just some good thoughts…