Powerful Trust

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

I've read and heard this verse numerous times as a Christian. It directly follows Jesus' cursing the fig tree and teaching the disciples that they have the power in Him to literally move mountains.

Yet, I know I have personally struggled when it seems the mountains in my life remain mockingly still despite my perseverance in prayer.

Jesus says clearly that the mountains can be moved if there is "no doubt in your heart," so I have generally assumed that when my power is weak, I must be doubting, whether I realize it or not.

But Jesus doesn't stop with faith and doubt. There is a critical verse that closes His teaching . . . "And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses" (Mark 11:26).

It would be easy to say that these verses address two different things: That we have the ability to yield the power of God in our lives if we have solid faith and the reiteration that to be forgiven, we must forgive.

Yet, I believe strongly that Christ is linking these two things together. Not only is our solid faith a prerequisite for God's power in Christ to flow in our lives, but confession of our sinfulness toward God and others must be addressed before God's work through us and for us can be accomplished.

Oswald Chambers says, "God is not actively involved with our natural life as long as we continue to pamper and gratify it . . . " One way we pamper and gratify ourselves is by giving ourselves permission to be offended by others and to relentlessly hold that offense against them.

Now, we are usually quick to ask ourselves if we are holding doubt in our hearts when we do not receive from God what we ask. We should be just as quick to ask ourselves if there is an unconfessed grudge in our heart toward another.

We simply will not experience the fullness of God's power in our lives -- no matter how determined our faith -- when we are holding unforgiveness in our hearts.

Why? Because at the root, the issue is the same: Do we trust God?

When we have doubt in His power, we show distrust in His ability to do this or that in our lives and we show that we do not really believe "all things are possible." When we hold unforgiveness and grudges towards others, we show our distrust in His ability to deal with the people who have wronged us and caused us pain and we show that we do not consider Him the "righteous Judge."

When we will "put [our lives] out in the desert" of trust in God alone, "He will . . . fulfill all His promises for the natural" (Oswald Chambers).