What do you want?

These vultures from Disney's Jungle Book remind me of me sometimes. If you've seen the movie, you'll remember that they are looking for something to do. It goes like this:

Buzzie: Hey Flaps, so what we going to do?
Flaps: I don't know, whatcha wanna do?
Buzzie: Look Flaps, first I say "what we going to do?" then you say "I don't know, what'cha wanna do?" then I say "what we going to do?" then you say "whatcha wanna do." Let's do something.
Flaps: Ok. Whatcha wanna do?

Ever been in a situation like that? I have many times, and that is why I can relate to these vultures. In these kinds of situations, either I really didn't care what was done, or I had no idea what I wanted, or I knew what I really wanted but was too concerned with the preferences of the others, or I felt that to say what I wanted was being selfish. In the end, my desires were not voiced and we never did anything I wanted to do.

Why is it so hard sometimes to just say what we want? There are probably many reasons why we find it difficult (for me I think it's because as a wife or mom and a Christian at that, I have been programmed to put the needs and desires of others before my own, which is not a bad thing in itself), but I think it's important to be able to do it. If we can't or don't say what we really want, we most likely won't get it. And the more specific we can be, the better.

How about in prayer? Are you able to tell God what you really want? Sometimes even that is difficult. It's easy to be vague, "Lord help me," but harder to be specific. Even though he knows what we want before we ask, he still wants us to ask. Consider this story from the book of Matthew:

And as they went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed him. And behold, there were two blind men sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!" The crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent, but they cried out all the more, "Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!" And stopping, Jesus called them and said, "What do you want me to do for you?" They said to him, "Lord, let our eyes be opened." And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.

He asked them to be specific. Having mercy on someone could mean many things. "What do you want me to do for you?" Then he did what they asked.

Jesus asks the same question today. "What do you want me to do for you?" Have you told him what you want? If you don't know what you really want, ask him. That's what I need to do. Sometimes I just don't know what I really want. What you want matters to him. And think about it. If you are specific and he gives you what you ask for, won't you love him more? Won't he be amazing to you? Won't you feel his love for you? Won't you want to tell someone what he did?

So watcha wanna do?