In My Name

“You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!” -Jesus John 14:13-14 So, why isn’t it always as clear cut at that?

Our names are important to us. The actual meanings of our names are significant for who we become. And our names carry the measure of integrity and authority that we display in every day life. When our Yes is Yes and our No is No, others will believe we will do what we say. When we correctly use the name of Jesus, we are speaking and acting with the full authority of our Creator.

Many of us work hard to make sure what we say is reliable. I remember the days of honorable people making commitments, even contracts, with a hand shake. Those commitments were respected and fulfilled between the two people as if they had the full legal force of the law behind it. Our word and our names mean something. That’s what is so great about these promises from Jesus. God’s integrity is unquestionable. When we pray according to the Will of God, it will be answered. Granted, we do not always understand timing and the ways of God, but the promises are sure. [Isaiah 55:8-9]

In the same way, if we are not aligned and in agreement with the purposes of God, we risk punishment. “Therefore, this is what the Lord says: I will punish these lying prophets, for they have spoken in my name even though I never sent them.” Jeremiah 14:14-15a. There are natural consequences for mistakes, but God is not trying to punish us. How do we avoid getting in trouble like lying prophets? By reading the Bible we come to understand how God works and wants us to pray. Learning the Word trains us to pray so our prayers can be answered.

The rewards are great for learning and aligning with the Word Of God, who is Jesus. “In that day [when Jesus leaves the earth] you will ask nothing of me. Truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:23-24. When we pray according to the will of God we receive Joy, and much more in return, because we are praying God’s will into existence.

“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15 What a great promise.

Do you have and know how to use a concordance? It is one of my favorite tools for prayer. I look up a word and it directs me to passages with that word in it. Sometimes they are not what I was thinking of, but then many times it helps. Either way, I read the word in context to learn more about how to pray in the name of Jesus. Computer word searches also help a lot. What do you do to learn how to pray better in his name?

Abba, I want to know you better and to pray from specific understanding of your will from the Word. I choose to discipline myself to read and learn more. Give me people to grow with. Thank you in advance for helping me because you want me to learn to pray in your name even more I want to. Amen