FAITH IN PRAYER OR FAITH IN GOD?

Have faith in God – Mark 11:22

“It is easy to become a fatalist in reference to prayer. It is easier to regard unanswered prayer as the will of God than to deliberately reason out the causes of defeat. But should we be less honest in our approach to this perplexing problem than a merchant to his adverse balance sheet? Perhaps our reluctance to analyse our failures in prayer is rooted in a mistaken solicitude for God’s honour. God is more honoured when we ruthlessly face our failure and diligently search for its cause than when we piously ignore it.

The underlying reason for every unanswered prayer is that in some way we have asked amiss (James 4:3). Could it be that we have substituted faith in prayer for faith in God? We are nowhere exhorted to have faith in prayer, but we are counselled: “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22). Faced with this problem the disciples asked: “Why could not we…?” “Because of your unbelief,” replied the Master. An analysis of our prayers might afford the disconcerting discovery that many of them are not the prayer of faith at all, only the prayer of hope, or even of despair. We earnestly hope that will be answered, but have no unshakable assurance to that effect. God has, however, undertaken to answer only the prayer of faith. “Whatever you pray for and ask, believe that you have got it, and you shall have it” (Mark 11:24, Moffatt). Don’t think the translator has got his tenses wrong! It is we who have got our attitude wrong!

Another prolific cause of defeat in the prayer life is a secret sympathy with sin. “If I regard” – cling to – “iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” Then let us search out and rectify the cause of our unanswered petitions.”