If we believe that God is who He says He is and will do what He has promised, why do so many of us habitually waver in our prayers? Instead of exercising bold faith, we come to the Lord “hoping” He will hear us and answer our request, but we are just not sure He will. With this kind of thinking, we cannot expect to receive anything from Him. My dad had a great saying, “Pray with belief and expect to receive, pray with doubt and expect to be left out.” Every day I include the request for boldness in my prayers. I want the boldness that the disciples had in Acts 4:24-35.
One reason we are so prone to doubt is that we fail to see God at work in our circumstances. We asked, and nothing happened. But the Lord is not some cosmic bellhop who jumps in response to our requests. He sees past, present, and future and knows the right time for every answer. His invisible had is already at work on our behalf – arranging situations in accomplish His will, opening hearts, and preparing us to receive what He wants to give.
Another cause for uncertainty is ignorance. If we don’t know God’s ways, we will be disappointed in His response. All too often our prayers are accompanied by expectations of how He will work. When He fails to intervene according to our timetable or anticipated method, we start to doubt. But placing our faith in the Lord and trusting in His good and perfect ways give us stability as we wait for His answer. Many of us have attended management seminars, where they tell us to keep a daily log of our activities. Not only do I do that I also write down my daily request to God. About once a month I review the list and check off the date that God answered my prayer request. Sometimes it is the same day, some the following week or month. Several have never been answered. However, upon review He usually gave me something greater than I asked for. We have a tendency to limit our God and ask for small things. Review your life and reread verses 34-35 again.
Today is a wonderful time to ask God to give you the boldness to speak His word, asking Him for your requests.
God will get us past our past!
Dr. Henry Thomas is an Ordained Assembly of God pastor and is available to minister to your church or group. He is a powerful speaker that has earned him the nickname – Fireball – His presentations and sermons are content rich. He can be contacted at: www.henryathomas.com or henry@henryathomas.com
