Psalm 83; Luke 11:5-

Psalm 83
Israel's enemies were threatening loudly, and God seems to be silent. Asaph begs for Him to listen and answer his prayer. vv. 1-8 Then he remembers victories of the past, and he asks God again to defeat his enemies. He is concerned about his homeland and his people, and he is also concerned that God's name would be honored. "Then they will learn that you alone are called the Lord, that you alone are the Most High, supreme over all the earth." v. 18

Luke 11:4-13
This illustration follows the "Lord's Prayer." It teaches us to keep on asking. Remember that God is a loving Father, not a grouchy neighbor! He will willingly give us what we need, unlike the neighbor who grudgingly responds because of our persistence. If the irritable neighbor will give you what you need, how much more will a loving Father--one who is never sleepy or impatient and has all resources at His disposal!

For some reason that I do not fully understand God asks us to keep on seeking, keep on seeking, and keep on knocking. "For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened." I know, I know. We have all asked on certain occasions and didn't seem to receive. I can't explain that, but we do live in a world filled with evil and illness and violence and suffering. That's what it means to live in a sinful world; God did not create us as slaves or robots, and often the innocent suffer because of the sins of others. These are things we understand only partially if at all, and sometimes we just have to trust God to be in control. But part of the explanation may be found in the next few verses. I think all we who are parents can understand this. If your children ask for what they need--such as food--we would never give them a snake or a scorpion instead. Our heavenly Father will in the same way give us what we need and much more. Also, following the parent theme, sometimes we have to insist that our children do what is good for them even though they may ask for something else. For example, we insist that they go to bed at night, go to school, the doctor, the dentist. We teach them to do their homework and their chores. They may (and probably will) beg otherwise, but we try to give them what they need and what is good for them.