A reading from the gospel according to Matthew 7:7-12:

7 Jesus said to his disciples: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
9 Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asked for a loaf of bread,
10 or a snake when he asked for a fish?
11 If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him.
12 “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the law and the prophets.”

Points for Reflection: Asking, Seeking, Knocking
1. The gospel passage above is part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount which is about character development that we need to have in order to be part of His kingdom. The kind of behavior that pleases Jesus is very difficult to follow that is why we need to pray.

2. God did not promise wealth, health and power. Instead, He promises the gifts of the Holy Spirit namely wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. These are the things that we should ask, seek and knock for. “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you (Matthew 6:33).”

3. God is generous. He give us what we need, not what we want. So, when pray, let us focus on being guided by the Holy Spirit so that we will know God’s will for our life. We want many things in life what there is only one thing that we need – a deep relationship with God. It is His will that we keep the line of communication with Him open all the time.

4. Our prayer must be persistent. Let us pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We must keep asking, seeking, and knocking because God wants us to be dependent on Him alone. He is our Father and we are His children.

5. For God to grant our prayer, we must please Him by having a good relationship with one another. It is therefore imperative that we do what is good for others because that is what we want them to do for us.