Don’t just pray, believe!

Mark 11:24 NLT “You can pray for anything, and if you believe…it will be yours.”

The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6 NIV). God’s greatest desire is to be believed. You can pray regularly and ritually, and even feel closer to God as a result, yet not expect Him to answer your prayers or for your situation to change. Peter had been put in prison and sentenced to death, and his execution was scheduled for a specified day. So, the church gathered to pray earnestly and fervently for his release (Acts 12:5 NIV). And God answered their prayers miraculously. God put the guards to sleep, opened Peter’s prison door, and set him free (Acts 12:7-10). Yet when he appeared on the doorstep of the house where the believers were praying, they could not believe it: “A servant girl…told everyone, ‘Peter is standing at the door!’ ‘You’re out of your mind!’ they said. When she insisted, they decided, ‘It must be his angel’” (Acts 12:13-15). Even the early disciples struggled to believe God would hear them when they prayed and bring their expectation to pass. Even when the answer knocked on their door, they still hesitated. And we do too, don’t we? We struggle with prayer. We forget to pray, and when we remember, we rush through prayers with insincere words. Why does this happen? You can pray anywhere, at any time, using your own words, and God promises to answer. So, what’s the problem? We need to realize the incredible power and potential of one praying believer (James 5:16-17): “Our weapons have power from God that can destroy the enemy’s strong places” (2Corinthians 10:4 NCV). So don’t just pray; believe God for the answer and expect it. Then talk and act like you believe and expectant!