Ask and ye shall receive? 5 thoughts on prayer & manifestation

Ask and ye shall receive, or maybe not…

No matter the variation or brand of desire, at some point in life, we realize we don’t always get what we ask for.

In Sunday School as children, many learn that we get what we want by knocking on a door or simply asking.

The new age meaning of this concept is called manifestation or the law of attraction — speaking and thinking intentionally about what we want until we get it.

But does this really work? After all, there is plenty of evidence that asking isn’t always followed by getting.

This leaves us with a feeling of disillusionment. Sometimes we stop asking to avoid disappointment.

But before you throw in the towel on manifestation and prayer, let’s explore these 5 observations.

Is asking or praying for what you want really even worth it?

5 Observations of Manifestation and Prayer

1. We ask for something we think we can get rather than asking for what we really want.

Think about the times you’ve asked for something, either from a higher power or someone you know.

Did you ask for what you really wanted? At first glance, it may seem so.

However, upon closer observation, it is clear that you only asked for rescue. You only sought an upgrade or improvement.

You did not do the soul searching required to identify what you want from a place of spiritual abundance and emotional health.

Instead of asking for a promotion, we’ll ask for a window cubicle or corner office. Rather than ask for a loving and thriving relationship, we ask for the patience to withstand loneliness or a dying marriage.

In these cases, we usually get what we ask for. However, we feel like we didn’t get what we asked for, because deep down we know we didn’t receive what we really want.

This is common to all of us. At every level in life, there will be a reckoning. We will either get honest about what we really want or bitter that God never answered our prayer.

2. By the time we get what we want, we forget that we asked for it.

This one’s tough. We’ve all heard, “God’s timing is not our timing.” And as we move through life, we either believe or bereave that fact.

From experience, almost nothing we ask for comes at the exact time we expect it. We often don’t expect or recognize answered prayers.

So, what’s the point of prayer or manifestation if we don’t get what we want when we ask for it?

Very good question. And if we were certain of the answer, we’d have bottled the solution and sold it already.

However, we can guess that maybe we’re just not ready to receive an answer upon the time of request.

In all of our humanity, we can’t see that getting what we think we want exactly when we want it could be detrimental to our life’s purpose.

It could be that once we get what we prayed for, we cannot connect the answered prayer to our past requests because it’s so different than what we imagined.

Sometimes we wait “so long” for God to answer our prayer that we forget our original request and move on to our next desire.

3. We ask for what we want from a place of confliction not conviction.

Often, our heart and mind are in conflict about what we want.

When this conflict exists, it’s impossible to pray from our gut.

When we do not pray from conviction about our desires, our prayers will likely go unanswered.

Praying from conviction often comes as a result of being at the end of our rope. In regard to love and relationships, we settle for misery because our heart can’t stand the thought of being alone.

Our mind knows the truth, but our heart is incapable of accepting it long enough to earnestly pray.

Praying from our gut says “I’m ready to let go in order to receive.” Sometimes God may just want our heart to catch up with our mind or our mind to catch up with our heart.

Look back on your life and think of the times you prayed with conviction about your situation. Think about the very moment you decided to be honest with yourself about the current state of affairs. Remember admitting in writing that your soul was desperate for reprieve.

What happened soon after those prayers?

God answered your prayer. “The universe” opened your door.

Despite our door having been opened, sometimes, we don’t realize God answered our prayer because pain and suffering is a part of the answer.

This leads us to our next observation.

4. When it comes to “Ask and ye shall receive,” we want the Glory not the Gory

You’re familiar with the phrase, “Be careful what you ask for.” You may think those who say this are cynical and jaded. But perhaps, they’re just wise. Maybe they carelessly prayed the prayers of youth from a place of innocence. They know what they didn’t know back then, and now realize the ignorance and foolishness of their requests.

Sometimes, we ask for certain virtues or powers. We want undying strength, for others to know us as compassionate, or to become a hero. Thus, we ask God to help us be these things. We are sure we want the Glory that comes with being a person of great virtue. Yet, we fail to realize that the road to enlightenment is paved with pain.

Instead, we learn that being a hero means accepting the gory details of martyrdom along the way.

Finally, we recognize that our self sacrifice is God’s way of answering prayers for self glorification.

In the practice of manifestation, we can self-affirm all day long, but we must also step out in faith if our dreams are to come true.

We must be ready to put in the grueling work that proves our intention to succeed.

5. We give up on our prayers too soon.

If you’re a parent, you know the value of a nagging child who is certain of what they want. Were you the child who wouldn’t leave your parents alone until they gave you what you wanted? Or are you the child who is uncomfortable making your requests known? Perhaps your pride gets in the way of persistence.

We often give up too soon because our fear of rejection wins.

Maybe we’ve experienced so many setbacks in life that our resolve is flimsy.

Perhaps manifestation doesn’t work because our minds are hard-wired to fail.

We must put in consistent work over a long period of time to change our thinking habits and re-train our brain to believe in success. If we give up too soon, we will claim prayer or manifestation doesn’t work.

“So, how long is long enough?” we ask.

If you give up on asking, it’s because somewhere in the back of your mind, you’re not sure you want to be heard.

You want relief from pain, but don’t believe the alternative can be better.

Your longing is to live life well, but you don’t believe that’s an option.

Conclusion

In summary, there’s more to “ask and ye shall receive” than meets the eye. As we get older, we get more discriminate about our requests. Hopefully, we learn to ask wisely. We understand that it’s more important to spend time figuring out what we should really manifest, rather than wasting energy on manifesting fleeting pleasures.

Whether you’re jaded about prayer or you’ve never prayed a day in your life, we hope this article sheds some light on the misunderstood belief that all we have to do is ask in order to receive.

LoveLifeLinks.com believes love will guide you toward receiving beyond what you could ever think or imagine.

Remember, you can feel love anywhere. Anytime. All the time.

An essay on “Ask and ye shall receive.”

When we ask, we receive. 

Beating around the bush isn’t asking. 

We dance around the truth of our desires because we treat our life like the movie screen.  We’ll tirelessly admire a projection rather than embody our favorite character. 

We like the idea of unashamed prowess, but we loathe the potential end of being perceived as loose.  We love the thought of dominating but despise the bill we may thereafter owe. 

To be revered as a saint, holy with unblemished intent, we relish the thoughts of an honored tombstone.  Yet knowing but with one slip of our resolve to abstain, our grave will be marked with blood stained tears of regret. 

Regret that we were neither fully good, nor fully evil—yet living in some purgatory, in between our basest yearnings and noblest goals.  I was nothing like them.  Though my desires were not unique. I worked tirelessly to persuade others to convince me of what I really wanted. 

But no one ever did.  With every word, despite my amateur way of weaving them, only a handful attempted to assume the meaning.  Union would require near perfection of reason and resistance all at once, but ultimately with real life logistics to overcome.  Why should anyone work this hard? 

And if they decided to take that chance, who would work the hardest?  Why would this effort prove worth it in the end?  Stories forget the drunken lonely nights of crafting a perfect encounter.  To find my match if only for a split second of feigned ecstasy, I’d spin a million riddles to catch you in my web.  But clear I had not been. 

Because clarity is transient.  A moment of truth for the time being.  It could have been so simple to say what I wanted.  But instead, I spoke of butterflies, the breeze and trees. 

I’d hoped to be seen between the lines and around the rhymes, at some point interpreted as palatable, even a treat worthy of overindulgence. 

Until in secret, it became clear you wished to read more. 

You were perfectly at ease with crumbling delicacies. 

Your ego understood you were merely a conduit of sweet release upon my admittance that I’m driven by an appetite to know more while consuming less. 

Though you’d been willing to taste and see the goodness thereof, I’d made you a flower to bloom rather than an apple of which to partake.