FAITH-FILLED PRAYER
Opening Prayer
Jesus, I want to know You more. Teach me to trust You more.
Read Mark 11:20–26
20 In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. 21 Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!”
22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly[a] I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” [26] [b]
Footnotes:
a Mark 11:23 Some early manuscripts “If you have faith in God,” Jesus answered, 23 “truly
b Mark 11:26 Some manuscripts include here words similar to Matt. 6:15.
New International Version (NIV)
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Reflect
Remember some of the times God answered your prayers and give Him thanks.Jesus demonstrates the power of His words by cursing the fig tree (20), then tells us that we can do more than that with our words (23).
What does it mean to have faith and not doubt (23)? Does God have some kind of cosmic “belief-ometer” that gives us our miracle when we reach the right level of faith? Perhaps you have been told by well-meaning friends that you need more faith when your prayer seems to go unanswered. Or, that an answer never came because of your lack of faith. But this sounds more like secular “positive thinking” than the “faith in God” that Jesus commands (22). To have faith in Him we must first know Him, and know that He is both trustworthy and mighty.
I’ve often found that it’s easier to have faith for someone else’s problem than for my own. That’s probably not a bad thing! I love to pray for others, believing that God will bring a miracle. But I’ve also had to learn to be humble enough to ask others to pray for me when I am finding it hard to believe that God will answer my prayer. Think, for example, about the friends of the paralyzed man in Mark 2:1–12. Jesus commended their faith as He healed their friend.
Apply
Think of someone whom you can ask to stand with you and support you in prayer. Ask them if they will pray with and for you!
Closing prayer
God, I want to take You at Your word, but I don’t always know how. Show me how to walk step by step in faith.
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