"AND all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." This declaration was made by Jesus, following his demonstration in connection with the fig tree, to impress upon his disciples the fact that the testimony of the physical senses, on which they placed so much reliance, was not to be trusted, and that material existence, considered substantial from the human viewpoint, was merely a sham. In view of the fact that he always supported his statements by tangible proofs, we cannot doubt the veracity of every word he uttered. In other words, we cannot reasonably question the views of Jesus concerning those subjects on which he gave instruction. He knew whereof he spoke, and meant every word he said.
Jesus further stated, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away,"—a statement surely meant to emphasize the value of his words. To those who can realize the significance of his utterances, how comforting it is to trust his promises! According to them, it is in our power to have dominion over every material belief. Rightly directed, this power, the power of Truth, when recognized and applied, would solve all individual as well as all world problems.
But we also read, "Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss." Evidently, human judgment is not sound enough to be dependable, and material sense is not trustworthy. Mortals are liable to desire certain things which are not right for them to have. In that case, it is not in conformity to divine law that they should have them. God is Love. His laws are based on Love; and it is not in the nature of Love to tolerate the unlovely. Therefore, when we desire anything, it would be well for us to analyze the nature of our desire, before we even wish to see it realized. It is true, certain desires may appear to us very uncertain as to their merit; but when we are confronted with a situation of that nature, it would be wise on our part to place the question entirely in the hands of God, confident that only good can be the outcome from such reliance. As Mrs. Eddy writes in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 1), "No loss can occur from trusting God with our desires, that they may be moulded and exalted before they take form in words and in deeds."
