Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Many pray and wonder, is there really a God?  They ask in prayer, and then whatever it is doesn’t come to pass, they then think again, is there really a God?

The answer is YES, there is a living God! He is not an ATM machine though.  He will not answer prayers so that you sin or continue in sin or for a sinful thing.  He doesn’t answer prayers of idolaters, I learned this one the hard way.  He won’t subject Himself to manipulation or the vain idols we might be clinging to.

The prayers He does answer are faithful prayers.  Jesus said “believe that you received it”, most overlook this and just see “ask and it will be yours”. The problem is when we DOUBT in God, doubt He working all things to your good, doubt in His providential grace, doubt He is God, we are not being faithful, we do not believe we have received whatever we asked from Him. Those prayers never work.

This means that let’s say you ask God for something, anything, BELIEVE that you have received it. Not IF you will, but that you have!  Now this believing must not come with strings attached or you are doubting God, testing Him.  Don’t put God to any test. Such as playing a game I used to play in my former life, “if God you do this for me, I will then do this for you”.  God does not play that game!  Again, He is not a quid-pro-quo God, or an ATM machine.

You must believe first that He most definitely, without a single doubt, exists. You must then also with a single doubt that whatever you have asked, the answer will be of His timing to His purpose alone, that He heard your prayer.  And that the answer He gives will not always be the way you expected, but according to His will being done.  There are some prayers answered which will be exactly to what you requested, some will be variants of which you will look back someday and know you were answered.  But BELIEVE you have received it!

The absolute great thing about God, is He doesn’t take breaks. 24/7/365, millions and millions of requests and nothing is beyond His power and realm.  He doesn’t have intermediators working in heaven either, repent of praying to others in heaven other than to Him if you are doing so. God does not work by a humanistic lobbying system.  You are not believing that you have received the request by doing so.

Each prayer you say, strengthens your relationship with Him. Pray without ceasing, meaning don’t cease your prayers with Him. Prayer is communication with Him, a relationship needs communication.  Get yourself out of the equation, and let God be God, believe in Him!  Asking in the name of Jesus Christ just as He lovingly told us.

Don’t pray as if He isn’t listening!  Some repeat His name over and over, as if He didn’t hear you the first time.  If you did this with someone in your life, they would most likely think you were a bit off that you kept repeating their name as if you didn’t know they were talking to you.  A growing relationship with God will be able to communicate with Him seamlessly, in reverence always, in respect always, in faith as to who He is and what He can do and what He cannot do which is to be a party to any sin, and even the hint of sin He cannot be a party of. Praying to be more worldly? Praying that you need that vacation to an exotic resort? Don’t expect God to bend to your sinful wants.

Pray always and openly!  God is pleased by FAITH, not by doubt, and not by sin.