Communicating With Our HEAVENLY FATHER: The Greatest Gift Of All

As children of God, not only are we blessed with salvation in the next life, we are also blessed in this life, for our Father is all-wise, all-knowing, all-powerful, and He is very concerned about the quality of life of His children; "For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:15-17). In the following verses we see that the abundant gifts of our God are ours for the asking; "And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" (Luke 11:9-13).

There is one very important thing that is required of us as we ask according to His will, and that is that we have faith, that we believe. Jesus said, "Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." (Mark 11:24). "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him" (1 John 5:14-15). James 1:5-8 speaks of the importance of faith in asking of God, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."

Salvation in the next life is the Greatest Gift of All, but with this gift comes the fringe benefit of being able to go to God in faith, and find help in any situation in this life, all because of the grace of God: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:" (Ephesians2:8).

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