Ask, Seek, Knock
Month 8: Talking with God — The Praying Family · Memory Verse
Today's Scripture
Read together: Matthew 7:7-8
7 Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Memory Verse
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.”— Matthew 7:7 (BSB)memorize this week
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Nahum 1–3
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (God is good, "a stronghold in the day of trouble.")The Heart of It
Jesus gives us three little words that teach us how to pray. Ask. Seek. Knock. Notice how they grow stronger. Asking is simply telling God what we need. Seeking is like looking for something we really want. We lean in. We don't give up easily. Knocking is standing at a door and tapping again and again until it opens. Jesus is saying something simple. Don't pray once and shrug. Keep coming. Keep wanting. Keep coming back. And He gives a wonderful promise. The one who asks receives. The one who seeks finds. The one who knocks has the door opened (). God answers people who actually come to Him.
Right after this, Jesus reminds us why we can pray with confidence. Earthly fathers aren't perfect, yet they still give good things to their kids. "How much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" (). So prayer isn't begging from a stingy stranger. It's children asking a generous Father who loves to give good things. Not always what we'd pick in the moment, but always what is truly good. This week, memorize as a family. Let it become the habit of your home. We ask. We seek. We knock.
Around the Table
Jesus said: ask, and God hears! Seek, and you find! Knock, and the door opens! God loves to give good things.
Let's do it: Knock on the table three times and say, "Ask! Seek! Knock!" Then say the verse together.
Asking, seeking, and knocking each get a little stronger. Jesus wants us to keep coming, not give up after one try.
Let's talk: What is something you've been wanting to ask God about? Let's ask Him right now.
The promise is for everyone who asks. But it's tied to a good Father who gives good gifts. He is not a wish-machine that hands over whatever we want.
Let's go deeper: Why is it good news that God gives what's good rather than just whatever we ask?
💬 Conversation Starter
What's something you had to ask for more than once before you got it?— Jesus says to keep asking God too — He's listening every time!
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Doesn't "ask and you'll receive" sometimes seem untrue? Jesus explains it just three verses later. The Father gives good gifts (). A good father doesn't hand a child everything they ask for. Neither does God. A prayer that isn't answered the way we asked is not a prayer that went unheard. It's a Father saying, "I have something better."
For Dad · Go Deeper
Beware two ditches as you teach this verse. The first ditch turns "ask and receive" into a name-it-claim-it formula. That's prosperity teaching, and it treats God like a vending machine and faith like a coin you put in. The other ditch quietly stops asking at all, because our hopes got bruised once. Jesus walks the road right between them. He calls for bold, persistent asking, anchored in the goodness of the Father, who reserves the right to answer wisely. Model that for your kids. Let them hear you pray for big things with real expectation. And let them watch you receive a "no" or a "not yet" with peace, because you trust the One you asked.
Draws on: Tony Evans, The Power of Prayer.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You for telling us to ask, to seek, and to knock. And thank You for promising to answer. Help our family keep coming to You, trusting that You give what is truly good. In Jesus' name, amen."
I can keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking — because a good Father is listening.