Be careful what you ask for…

Have you ever heard the proverb (or saying): ‘‘Be careful what you wish for: it might happen’’ or ‘‘Be careful what you ask for: you might get it!’’ 

In my posting ‘‘Pray for me…’’, I explained how it was often risky to ask God to come back on His sanctions. I exhorted us to trust in the Lord who is well aware of what He is up to and who always chastise knowingly. I also said that even though He can grant the request of any of His servants because of a covenant, the price to pay for this type of intercession was frequently very high. 

The two examples below are going to illustrate the danger that some answered prayers represents. 

2Kings 20:1-6, “In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, "Thus says the LORD, 'Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.'" Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, saying, "Now, O LORD, please remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight." And Hezekiah wept bitterly. And before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the LORD came to him: "Turn back, and say to Hezekiah the leader of my people, Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the LORD, and I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David's sake."… 12 At that time Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent envoys with letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And Hezekiah welcomed them, and he showed them all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them. 14 Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah, and said to him, "What did these men say? And from where did they come to you?" And Hezekiah said, "They have come from a far country, from Babylon." 15 He said, "What have they seen in your house?" And Hezekiah answered, "They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing in my storehouses that I did not show them." 16 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, "Hear the word of the LORD: 17 Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the LORD. 18 And some of your own sons, who shall be born to you, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon." … 21 And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and Manasseh his son reigned in his place. 2Kings 21:1 Manasseh was 12 years old when he began to reign… 2 And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel.” 

God was pleased with the life that Hezekiah had lived and He wanted to give him the opportunity to make a beautiful exit (I mean, to die in style). Unfortunately, like many of us, Hezekiah clung onto life. He pleaded his cause before the One that he had faithfully served with integrity and tired of his tears, God gave up and granted him 15 more years. He had won; he was happy and yet, he should have been crying. Had he been able to see in advance what would have been the fruit of those 15 additional years, I am not sure that he would have still wished so much to live…just for the pleasure of living. 

Indeed, soon after his spectacular recovery, Hezekiah got carried away by pride and could not resist the urge to display his glory and his power in front of a nation traditionally hostile to Israel. This time, God’s judgment was swift: the people would be captivies in Babylon precisely, and his sons would be eunuchs for the king of Babylon: they would be emasculated... 

As if that was not enough, Hezekiah also turned the 15 years that the Lord granted him to ‘profit’, by giving birth to the most despicable king that Israel would ever have: Manasseh. He was so despicable, that he became the standard of wickedness for all the sovereigns after him. Each time any of them would do what is evil, they would say of him that he “walked in all the ways of Manasseh, his father.’’ Idolatry, profanation of the Sanctuary, all sorts of divinations, spiritism, human sacrifices etc., he did not deprive himself of anything and, neither did his son after him (see 2Kings 21:1-9, 18-21). The situation was such that the Lord’s wrath finally fell on the whole Nation: 

2Kings 21:10-12, “And the LORD said by his servants the prophets, "Because Manasseh king of Judah has committed these abominations and has done things more evil than all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and has made Judah also to sin with his idols, therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Jerusalem and Judah such disaster that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle.” 

2 or 3 years ago, I saw on TV, the testimony of a Man of God who had been mightily used by the Lord. After 9 years of marriage and despite many miraculous healings and even a few cases of resurrection of the dead, he was still childless. As usual, some of those who are always very quick to judge and to slander had already started suspecting him of being a fake because after all, ‘‘it was impossible that God could so abandon one of His faithful and true servant!’’ 

Then the miracle happened; his wife conceived and gave birth to a son. They were all in bliss when Death came to fetch his wife a few months later. The Man of God was devastated, especially at the thought that his dearest wife would not be there to see their long awaited son grow. Nevertheless, he went on with the ministry. 

One day, his son fell sick and quickly died ; he was about 5 years old. The pastor locked himself up in a room with his son’s body and for two days, he cried out to God: ‘‘You took my wife, and I said nothing. Now You also want to take the only thing that she has left me? No way, never! Either You give my child back or I give you back Your ministry.’’ At some point, he heard God say to him: ‘‘But, I also love this child; I want him next to me because I also delight in him.’’ The Man of God repeated: ‘‘Either You give my son back, or You take Your ministry back.’’ Finally, the Lord brought the child back to life and the father came out triumphantly with him, in the midst of the cheering crowd of his amazed members. Everything seemed perfect in the most perfect of worlds… 

C.S Lewis said: “There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘All right, have it your way’.” Our guy was just about to find it out. 

Around 15-16 years of age, the boy became rebellious. He joined a gang and started terrorizing the neighbourhood. Many people left the church because the pastor was unable to bring him back to order. Incapable of taking it any longer, the Man of God found himself begging the Lord to take his son if He would not change him. After many days of supplication, the Lord told him: ‘‘When I wanted him because I found pleasure in him, you refused him to Me. Now that you no longer want him and that nobody wants him, you are begging Me to take him: I will not; he is yours.’’ The kid was later shot dead by the police during an armed robbery that went wrong. Telling the story, his father confessed that he would have given a lot to turn back the hands of time, and let his child go at 5 years of age. If only he had known… 

But must we necessarily know first, to believe? Must we know to trust in the All-Power and All-Goodness of God? “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29 

I started this post saying: ‘‘Be careful what you ask for: you might get it!’’ And you might get what might make you miserable for life. You might get what might alienate your progeny forever. Do you really want what you want?

Let us have faith in the omniscience, the wisdom and the goodness of God: He knows what He is doing, He knows where He is leading us to. His choices are right and sure. We do not know the future, we live in the present and if we could foresee the result of some of our fervent requests, the fruit of our intercessions, we would sometime wish to die. As St Theresa of Avila said, ‘‘What amount of tears will be shed on answered prayers...’’

God bless you.