October 27: What do you want?

That night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!” Solomon replied, “You showed faithful love to your servant my father, David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued your faithful love to him today by giving him a son to sit on his throne. Now, O Lord my God, you have made me king instead of my father, David, but I am like a little child who doesn’t know his way around. And here I am in the midst of your own chosen people, a nation so great and numerous they cannot be counted! Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern this great people of yours?” The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for wisdom. So God replied, “Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies — I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one else has had or ever will have! And I will also give you what you did not ask for — riches and fame! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life.”  (1 Kings 3:5-13 — New Living Translation)

Solomon was at a critical phase in his life. King David, considered Israel’s greatest king, had just died and he was expected to fill his father’s shoes and take over as king. His sense of inadequacy made him do a very wise thing that we, many times, fail to do: he turned to God for help. Instead of firing his father’s advisers and hiring his own, organizing an impressive inauguration ceremony, and insisting that everyone listen to him or suffer the consequences… he appealed to God.

Amazingly God appeared to him and offered to give him whatever he asked for, and when his request please God, He decided to give him even what he did not ask for. I’m sure some of you may be thinking, “I wish God would do that to me. Why doesn’t God offer to give me whatever I want?” It’s important to remember that God is the same, He doesn’t change, and what He did with Solomon He is ready to do today with us. But a secret to Solomon’s request was that he asked for wisdom — not for himself — but to be a good leader for God’s people. Many times that’s where we fall short. We are selfish in our requests, and forget about using what God gives us to help others.

Another secret to Solomon’s request is what he did right beforehand God spoke to him — he gave God an offering of 1000 bulls. Sure, he was rich, a prince, who had lived in a palace his entire life, but the number of bulls or the amount of money they represented is not the point. The point is that right after he made this offering, God appeared to him and asked him that question. Clearly God had been impressed — Solomon’s actions had caused God to reaction. Are 1000 bulls impressive to God? Not really. He owns all the bulls in the world. What was it that grabbed God’s attention then? It was the message that Solomon sent by doing that — he must have made God feel special, to feel needed, to feel that he treasured Him much more than all those animals.

Whenever we give God something precious, whether it is possessions, time, money, or effort, He will respond. What Solomon did was not about money or possessions, or buying God’s favor — he was simply communicating to God that he needed His help, that he felt like “a little child who doesn’t know his way around” and needed someone greater to help him. We normally only exert effort, or spend time or money on the things we value or consider important, and Solomon’s gift clearly communicated that to God, and brought the desired result.

Think about this. What could you do to make God feel important and valuable? Solomon did not just make a prayer for God’s help, he acted, he did something that cost him much more than words, and this is what God is waiting for us to do.