Written by: John Sernaque
Dear Reader.
Books / Pr - Prayer (2002) / Chapter 6—The Prayer Of Faith
Do Not Falter if No Immediate Answer Is Given—Your faith must not let go of the promises of God, if you do not see or feel the immediate answer to your prayers. Be not afraid to trust God. Rely upon His sure promise: “Ask, and ye shall receive.” God is too wise to err, and too good to withhold any good thing from His saints that walk uprightly.—(Testimonies for the Church 1:120.) {Pr 59.2}
Pray; Then Leave the Results With God—
Work in faith, and leave results with God. Pray in faith, and the mystery of His providence will bring its answer. At times it may seem that you cannot succeed. But work and believe, putting into your efforts faith, hope, and courage. After doing what you can, wait for the Lord, declaring His faithfulness, and He will bring His word to pass. Wait, not in fretful anxiety, but in undaunted faith and unshaken trust.—(Testimonies for the Church 7:245.) {Pr 59.3}
Pray With Confidence—It is the heartfelt prayer of faith that is heard in heaven and answered on earth. God understands the needs of humanity. He knows what we desire before we ask Him. He sees the soul’s conflict with doubt and temptation. He marks the sincerity of the suppliant. He will accept the humiliation and affliction of the soul. “To this man will I look,” He declares, “even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.” {Pr 60.1}
It is our privilege to pray with confidence, the Spirit inditing our petitions. With simplicity we should state our needs to the Lord, and claim His promise.—(God’s Amazing Grace, 92.) {Pr 60.2}
How often do we pray for patience and ask God to give it to us right away. God answers prayers when the time is right. God’s timing is perfect. We may think we know, but God knows the beginning from the end. God may not answer our prayers exactly in the way we want, but will answer in the way that is best for us. While we wait for the answer, it does us no good to fret in anxiety. God knows what we need even before we ask. We are to trust in God and peacefully wait for His blessings. We are to pray in confidence, claim His wonderful promises, then leave the results with God.
Our kind and gracious Father,
We come humbly, yet boldly, into Your presence in prayer. We confidently lift up our petitions before Thee that You will hear our prayers in heaven and answer them for us here on earth. You are the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. You know everything there is to know, and You know us better than we know ourselves. You knew us even before we were in the womb and the number of hairs on our head. It is our privilege to come to You in prayer, one of Your many gifts to us. We know our need to have You in our life and to be continually in Your presence. You know us so well, You know what we desire even before we ask and will answer our prayers in the way that is best for us. As You know what will be, we thank You for keeping us out of harm’s way and for waiting for the perfect time to answer our prayers in our best interest. We thank You for helping us to be patient when we do not see or feel an immediate answer to our prayers. We thank You for giving us faith and courage while we wait on Your providence. To not be afraid, and only trust and believe. We thank You for the wisdom You impart unto us to pray, and leave the results to You. For helping us not to fret in anxiety as we wait, knowing that our prayers are heard in heaven and answered here on earth. Thank You for not withholding any good thing from us. At times, we experience doubt and temptation but it is Your promises to us that helps us through these times. Wait on the Lord, and He shall strengthen thine heart. We thank You for hearing and answering our prayers, in the name of Christ Jesus, we pray. Amen.
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