It is not enough to begin to pray, nor to pray aright; nor is it enough to continue for a time to pray; but we must patiently, believingly continue in prayer, until we obtain an answer; and further, we have not only to continue in prayer unto the end, but we have also to believe that God does hear us and will answer our prayers. Most frequently we fail in not continuing in prayer until the blessing is obtained, and in not expecting the blessing. —George Mueller
The Lord has such a sense of humor. Just this morning I found myself in tears, weary from praying for my husband’s salvation. I wanted to give up. I was feeling defeated. So what is a believer to do when the desire to persevere is exhausted? Well, I emailed a few friends and guess what? They prayed for me.
Intercessory prayer is selfless, pure, and extremely powerful in the ears of our Lord. I have much to share with you about this kind of prayer along with an unforgettable visual. Watch for that post in a few weeks. To read this series from the beginning (click here).
What I want to share today has been rolling around in my brain now for a week, believing prayer. What does believing prayer look like, feel like? What is it?
It is faith. It is an assurance of the truth of the scriptures and it is of the heart. Now, I am not talking about positive thinking or convincing ourselves that our prayers are going to come to pass. That kind of nonsense is unscriptural. Biblical faith is grown in our heart. Our belief grows as we read the Word of God and as we pray. This is why the first two posts in this series covered the basics. Believing prayer grows out of understanding scriptures. The understanding I speak of is given to us by the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 2:14 (NIV) The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
John 6:63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
This is what makes the Bible, God’s Living Word –live! The scriptures are revealed as truth through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is through our faith that we can pray believing God will answer.
There is a fascinating portion of scripture that directly addresses this: Mark 6: 1-6 Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples. When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed.
“Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him, that he even does miracles! Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.
Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor.” He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their lack of faith.
Now get this….. Even God, himself, could do little in the way of miracles in this town because the people did not believe.
Perhaps you know other Christians who can pray down heaven. You wonder why you can’t do the same and ask yourself, ‘what is wrong with me. Why does God hear their prayers and ignore mine?’
Take heart and hear this now. You may see spiritual fruit in another person’s life and wonder why you don’t experience the same. Spiritual truth arrives in our lives in small measures. What you do with a seed of truth is what determines the fruit that will grow from it. Growing fruit takes time….
Don’t fret because you feel you want to believe God will answer but your faith is weak. Growing faith takes time.
One other scripture that gives me comfort is the story of the possessed boy who is brought to Jesus by the boy’s father. This story is poignant and powerful. (Read it here). This is what we read at the end of the exchange: Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”
Ask the Lord to begin to grow your faith. Ask God to help you overcome your unbelief. It really all comes down to this simple statement: Do we really believe what the Word of God says? Can you imagine what a different world it would be if we did?
Believing prayer is crucial but it must be coupled with praying in God’s will.
I can pray for a new Cadillac believing God wants to give it to me but if a new car is not in God’s will my prayers are just words.
It is possible- necessary- to understand God’s will for our prayer life. It is in praying smack dab in the middle of God’s will where breakthroughs occur. Next week we will bring all of this together into the powerful prayers that God is waiting for us to utter. Prayers that save souls, heal bodies, rescue us from unfulfilling work, revitalize marriages, topples governments, and defeat Satan.
Assignment: Ask the Lord to grow your faith. Trust Him that he will stretch you as far as you can handle but to bring you to a new place of faith. (This can be a scary request)
Question:
More….much more, Praying within God’s will. What is intercession? Who is interceding Anyway? Dangerous Prayers, Kneeling Before the Throne, Recognizing God’s answers to prayer, The Work of Fasting.
“If we would pray aright, the first thing we should do is to see to it that we really get an audience with God, that we really get into His very presence. Before a word of petition is offered, we should have the definite consciousness that we are talking to God, and should believe that He is listening and is going to grant the thing that we ask of Him.” —R.A. Torrey
Be Blessed, Lynn
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