This was a help and a challenge all at once:
"According to your faith be it unto you" (Matt. 9:29).
"Praying through" might be defined as praying one's way into full faith, emerging while yet praying into the assurance that one has been accepted and heard, so that one becomes actually aware of receiving, by firmest anticipation and in advance of the event, the thing for which he asks.
Let us remember that no earthly circumstances can hinder the fulfillment of His Word if we look steadfastly at the immutability of that Word and not at the uncertainty of this ever-changing world. God would have us believe His Word without other confirmation, and then He is ready to give us "according to our faith."
"When once His Word is past,
When He hath said , 'I will,' (Heb. 13:5)
The thing shall come at last;
God keeps His promise still." (2 Cor. 1:20)
The prayer of the Pentecostal age was like a cheque to be paid in coin over the counter. --Sir R. Anderson
"And God said…and it was so." (Gen. 1:9.) - Mrs C E Cowman
Can someone please explain to me why earthly circumstances can't affect the fulfilment of His word, but He only gives us according to our faith? Doesn't that mean that we can affect the fulfilment of God's word?
2 comments:
The two important things to remember:
God knows everything.
God loves us.
God is aware of the state of our faith and of our heart at all times. He looks at he heart- He knows how much temptation we can take, how much encouragement we need, how incapable we are, at any given moment, of trusting Him. He knows, in advance, everything we will ever need, because, though the future is hidden from us, God created time itself.
As we live, God is training us to trust Him and to ask Him for things. He works on us through His chosen medium of time, teaching us little by little, so that we can observe His care for us. We can't affect His decisions because He is unchanging, but He wants us to be aware of our needs, then watch as He provides for them. It's paradoxical to us- how can He really be answering our prayers if He's been planning this all along?
It's our understanding of cause and effect that is insufficient. We're limited by time, so we view cause and effect in a linear way. God is not subject to that limitation, but still wants a relationship with us. By allowing us time to develop and to think for ourselves, He has enabled us to make our own decisions and become individuals. He even subjected Himself to time, because He wanted us to see that He was loving and wanted us to know Him personally.
The Bible says that He 'foreknew' us (Romans 20:29), and at the same time 'predestined' us 'to become conformed to the image of His Son.' God knows and knew us intimately, as individuals, before we ever existed, because we already existed in His mind. Every detail! He knew how our personalities would develop, He knew how we would grow, and how quickly, and He knew what we would need, and when we would ask Him for help, or when we would try to solve things ourselves. He loved us, too, and planned out all the gifts He would give us, as we were ready for them.
It's hard for us to conceive of this being a real relationship, because, here we are, in time, playing out something He's already thought of. But He is the God who was, is, and is to come, and He exists in all times. Despite our inability to understand His universal knowledge outside the context of time, He is capable of knowing us and loving us, and of maintaining a relationship with us. He promised us that He will always be with us. You're right--it's a challenge to our understanding, but it's definitely an encouragement for our hearts.
found your comment really thought provoking and encouraging Joel, especially learning more in experience about what you wrote about God teaching us to ask, and revealing His provision too! =) thanks for sharing that.
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