A "theme" that has been a small topic of conversation between a few of us recently has really been weighing on me the last few days. I've been trying to post something on it but for some reason I could only comment. It's taken care of now though so here's my post. The theme that we have touched on back and forth is true faith.
What I have been hearing from this idea actually has also been stemming from our recent action of posting our prayer requests. Ya know, there is a significant connection between the two. I do not mean for this to sound offensive to anyone because I am speaking for myself here as well. Sometimes, not always, I think that when we pray for something but preemptively include the words "if its Your will God"; it leaves room to be let down. Christ tells us that faith can move mountains! Can you all really believe that? Can I? It sounds a little ridiculous if you ask me but I really am starting to believe that. That is not to say that it would ever really make any sense for us to move a mountain by faith. Maybe we should just leave the actual mountain moving to God.
We all have mountains in our lives though. We have to stop praying with a questioning heart and start praying with real faith behind it. Why are we afraid to pray for actual healing in friends like Chris Newman, Roberts grandpa, or Aaron's mom. Christ has given us authority to pray for real action. Yes, there is definitely an element of Gods will in everything, and it is likely that he has specific plans for peoples earthly lives, but how many times in the bible did a believer pray to God with authority and change Gods heart. I would think that millions were saved throughout the ages because of prayer with real faith.
I am now starting to sense even as I write this that prayer without faith behind it may just be a little more than asking God for a favor. God I'm sure loves our praises and I'm sure hears our prayers even now but I just can't help but think that He is just sitting up there waiting for us to raise our prayers to Him with the absolute faith that when we ask for healing - we get it! When we ask for a spiritual awakening - we get it! When we ask for anything that a true believer in Christ could possibly need - WE GET IT!!! No more "if it be your will God" questioning prayers. There is no faith in a question like that. "If it's your will" gives more room for our " lack of faith " to be proven.
As I said I am generally speaking here to us, not to just you guys. Collectively I think that our group can really start making a difference in peoples lives. Spoken words might possibly be just words without faith. I've touched on in the past a bit how I think that we have just started to scratch the surface on what God has in store for us as real believers in Christ. Our finite minds have a real difficult time understanding the greatness of God, but I also believe that our finite minds have a tool that can be used to reach into Gods heart and ask for Him to really give us His Divine Intervention. Faith is everything!
I have been thinking and praying about this post since I read it yesterday morning. Part for God to reveal conviction and part for clarity on my belief regarding this idea. It's definitely challenging.
ReplyDeleteI agree that we should not present our petitions to God as though we are asking questions. He asks us to come boldly before him. Anything we ask for in his name, we are told, will be given to us. "Ask and you shall receive. Knock and the door will be opened." I wonder if our asking for his will comes more from a place of being timid than lacking faith...feeling unworthy to tell God what to do rather than being unsure that he will deliver. Most likely, it is a mixture of the two.
I think this is a too complex an issue to say "no more 'if it be your will...'" Perhaps the key is in the phrasing. Jesus taught us to pray with the Lord's prayer. "Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven."
Asking for God's will is a way that we protect against (subconsciously or consciously) asking for our own will, which is not the purpose of prayer, understanding that the more faith we have, the easier it will be to discern between his will and our own.
I guess what I am trying to say in the end is that we need to pray for his will to be done without the contingent "if" AND we need to come boldly before him and ask for things, knowing in both prayers that our faith...the heart of our prayer is what makes the difference.
Yeah, so as I was reading my post after it had been submitted, I thought that it may sound a bit unclear. I think that you are absolutely correct in your clarification. My point I guess was that regardless of what Gods will is in any situation, whether it be someones sickness, or finances, or fear in something, I do believe that God gave us the authority to pray for absolute healing, or absolute clarity with financial decisions, or absolute peace in a fearful situation and that we are to timid to use that authority. I don't think that it would be as much us telling Him what to do for us as it would be us confidently letting Him know that we really do need Him. I don't think that every time we emphasize " if it be your will" we are scared or timid to ask with authority, because I truly do believe that we are wanting His will in every situation. I wasn't trying to call out anybodies faith in their salvation but more or less the confidence in their prayers to Christ, and to be honest with you, I really was more or less reaffirming on paper, so to speak, that my prayer life needs to be bold. Bold with absolute faith that when I submit a prayer of great concern to God that it actually could come to fruition.
ReplyDeleteYou do pose a very good point and I completely agree with you and I think that we ultimately were on the same page only your version was a little more understandable. I think the ultimate reality of this idea is that I think our prayers are often times very passive. At least I know mine have been in the past. I don't know exactly, that when we ask for healing in a person in a dire situation, we really believe or have faith that it will happen. Maybe I'm wrong but I think that leaves room for the lack of confidence in the fact that God will hear our prayers and act accordingly. Then ya know if we don't see any difference in that situation we can always just say "well, I guess it wasn't Gods will". Maybe it wasn't, but I think the faith that a miracle will happen is what sometimes may be necessary.
As I said in the post itself, I hope I didn't offend anyone. Your right James, it is a topic that might be a bit complex and there are many angles that someone could take away from this idea. Maybe even some that were not intended. Maybe I am the one that was supposed to take something away from this. Thanks James for your comments. We'll checks ya later.
Agreed. This is another opportunity for our group to grow together. As we hold each other accountable for praying boldly, we will help one another "grow in knowledge and depth of insight."
ReplyDeleteThanks, Chris, for bring this to the group.