Do we believe?

Have you ever prayed and did not have any kind of answer to your prayer? Perhaps you have never had this problem and God always answers your prayers. If so I would not continue reading today's post. This post is intended for those who have prayed and not seen anything happen with their prayers. You know all the Sunday School answers as to why your prayers are not answered. One of my favorites is "God did answer your prayer, you just did not like the answer." Ever heard that one? Another good one is that "God did not answer your prayer because it was not according to His will?" I heard that one too, have you? And another one is "God did not answer your prayer because you were not sincere enough or your motives were wrong?" Heard those as well. Perhaps all of these are legitimate in some form or another, but perhaps the best reason I have is that we just do not really believe that God wants to answer our prayers. Jesus stated in Mark 11:24 "whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." Perhaps the problem is not with our prayers, but with our belief? When we pray we are sincere with our request, but then we go on as if we never actually prayed that God would hear or answer our prayers. I remember hearing a story about a student who was talking to Charles Haddon Spurgeon the great preacher of the 1800s in England. The student told Spurgeon that no one ever came forward to receive Christ when he preached. Spurgeon asked him if he believed that someone should get saved everytime he preached? The student replied he did not. Spurgeon then replied "that is why no one gets saved." Perhaps we have the same problem with our prayers as well. I know that there have been times when I did not sense that God answered my prayers. I looked to see if there was unconfessed sin in my life. I examined to see if my prayers were aligned with the will of God. I even questioned if my motives were pure and my prayers were not for selfish gain. Yet still I had no answer from God. Maybe the failure was that I just did not believe. My failure to believe was revealed in the actions I took or did not take. If we truly believe that God will answer our prayers then we must do our part to receive the answer. For instance if we are praying for a job we still need to do our part and look for the job, believing that God is going to provide us with a job. If we are looking for opportunities to minister to someone then we must keep our eyes open for when those opportunities arise. We must live our lives in the belief that God will answer our prayers. One more story to illustrate the truth. Hudson Taylor was on his way to China to serve as a missionary. The boat on which he was sailing had not had a steady breeze for several days and basically was dead in the water. The captain of the ship realized Hudson Taylor was a godly man and came to him with a request to pray for wind. Hudson Taylor responded: "I will pray for wind, but you must set the sails." The captain responded but there is no wind. Hudson Taylor stated "I will pray for wind, but you must be ready to receive the answer." The title of this post is appropriate "Do we believe?" Do we believe that God will answer our prayers? Then my challenge to you is to set your sails and be ready for the answer. God wants to do mighty and marvelous things through us if we will just believe. We should not allow our failure to believe to keep God from doing what He truly wants to do. Let's partner together to be people of belief as we pray. I can't wait to see what happens. I look forward to hearing your stories of answered prayer.