Many years ago, we purchased our first home in the woods. One day while checking the oil in my car, I heard the sound of rusting in the shrubs at the edge of the driveway. My curiosity noticed that there was something about waist high rummaging around. My thoughts flashed back to a recent report of a bear sighting in our area. It is amazing how our minds fill-in the unknowns with the most dangerous possibilities!
Walking by faith through the doors that God opens in our lives can be just as intimidating. Our minds usually fill in the unknowns with the worst possible scenarios. Yet, because God is working in our lives, while it may not unfold as we expect, trusting Him always unleashes His blessing in our lives. This is where living prayer becomes a necessity in our lives. Living prayer is more that just bringing our burdens and needs to the Lord. It is living out the truth that our Heavenly Father is working out His best in our lives.
A couple of weeks ago I was struck by the account of Jesus’ cursing the fig tree. His disciple’s shock at the power of Jesus’ words provided the opportunity for Jesus to talk about their need to trust God. “And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God.” (Mark 11:22). It seems to me that the word “faith” in this verse is speaking about trust. Jesus goes on to remind them of the power of faith to move a mountain. It emphasizes next the need to live out what we pray. “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark 11:24).
What Jesus is pointing out is our need to be people of living prayer! God always answers but sometime it is yes, no or wait. This is the reason why we pray. It is our invitation for God to work in our situation how He chooses. We know that we can count on Him to answer requests that are according to His Will. Living prayer is living out our trust in God, knowing that our situation is in His hands. Unfortunately, many times we take back what we have given to God. Our lack of trust almost always manifests itself in the fear of the unknown. It creates worry over our inability to influence the outcome.
I believe that we need to be specific in our prayer requests. We also need to live them out in our trust of our Heavenly Father to work, “believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” This is one of the greatest benefits of prayer. It keeps our focus on the Lord and how He is going to work things out. It also breaks the bondage of fear and worry in our lives. Paul reminds us that prayer is the cure for our anxiety.
I never cease to be amazed at how often I get it wrong when I allow my mind to fill in the unknown details in a situation. The rustling in the bushes was not a bear, but a brush picker!
-Pastor Joe Parkinson