Ask!

Three Men on a Raft by Newell Convers Wyeth

We can quickly guess the story in this painting. A raft floats adrift on the ocean -- most likely a ship wrecked by a storm. The storm has stopped and there is daylight now. The raft floats along on the waves that have subsided quite a bit.

Now we are left with three men on a raft. One man lays prostrate in exhaustion and helplessness. Another man sits in the fetal position turned into himself. He can shut out the surroundings this way. But the third man is actively standing with arms raised and shouting. He has not given up.

This picture shows us what prayer is to be. We all find ourselves in all kinds of shipwreck situations. Some of those situations we can get ourselves out of without asking God. But when we are in a humanly hopeless place we have a choice. We can either curl up in despair or we can stand up and ask the Lord of the universe to help us. He has all the resources we need if we'll only ASK.

We are meant to ask all the time -- for small or large things. For the truth is that man without God can do nothing but God without man will do nothing.

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