ASK, SEEK, KNOCK...
Asking is a way of life lived with an open hand. To ask is to depend on someone other than yourself. It is very humbling. Asking indicates: I don't know/ I failed/ I ran out / I can't find it / I am not sure / I don't understand / I forgot / I didn't listen / I didn't care / I was wrong / I am not prepared / I need more information / I came up short...
There's an interesting dilemma here for Christians. If Christianity is no more than a system that answers all of life's questions, than to admit any of the above shortcomings is to be something less than a good Christian. But in our own attempts to be good Christians, we undermine our need for God. We want Christianity to work. We want it to exist in a closed system where every question has an answer, every problem has a solution. We want to show the world a neat, clean, open-and-shut case for Christianity. But in the process, we unknowingly shut out God. Claiming to be wise, we become fools; we exchange the truth of God for a lie and worship the created things (our systems, principles and formulas) rather the Creator (Michael Card).
That's why we should ask. Thomas asked Jesus to let him touch His side and His hands...