heaven's tree book club

August 18, 2012
The Prayer of Faith
Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the
sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
I had prayed a couple of days ago regarding the four impossible issues I now face. Faith is a key part of prayer. Yet, today, I faced some challenges. I felt pretty discouraged throughout this day. We found out about a possible job that fell through today and our concerns about finances continues on. God showed us this opportunity was not the way to go but it still was very discouraging. My mood had gone up a little with lunch at Hometown Buffet and spending lunch with mom and my brother. Then we went to Ranch 99 for shopping. Being outside and having lunch out helps improve my mood which in turns help my physical and spiritual health. In the morning I had a dream of three close sisters I did not see in several years pray over me while I was on the ground in deep prayer and anguish. These three church sisters have been in my life some of the most encouraging people but even with this dream, much of the morning was very discouraging. It wasn't until dinner with three close friends at Happy Corner and the laughs and stories we shared that helped quite a bit. Food, fellowship, and fun are key pieces in overall and improved well-being.
 


"Your Faith Is Your Evidence
"Next, your actions must be consistent with those words. Exactly what do you do? Well, if you prayed for God to provide you with a new car, you do not know how it will come to you. But you had faith when you prayed that God would supply your car. Now, how do you act? One thing you might do is to clean your junk out of your garage. If you believe you will have a car to put in there, you will need some room. If you prayed for new clothes, you can clean out your closet in anticipation of those new clothes arriving. That's what you do when you're expecting a baby, right? You decorate the baby's room, buy the baby clothes, and get a crib or playpen. A prayer request is just like that baby, in that you must believe it is as real as that child growing inside a woman, yet which you cannot see (without a sonogram).
In the natural we understand the process of carrying a child for nine months, so we have an easier time expecting a child than we do a prayer request, which could come at any time—but sometimes later rather than sooner. However, the principle is the same:"
This is really a key piece of faith. Our actions need to match our faith. I like the cleaning out our garage illustration. If I truely believe God will heal me, I will not be looking at wheelchair prices online. I would be doing things that prove I believe God can and will and has healed me. What those things are exactly, I am not sure. One thing would to invest in an eliptical machine. I do already have a simplified one, but it doesn't work right. I must have my actions match my prayer request. If I truly believe my girlfriend is my wife, I would stop searching for other potential possibilities. There are things we can do now that help our faith and further us on the road of answered prayer.

"So far we have discussed two ingredients for answered prayer:
 1. Determine what you want, then find scriptures that promise that to you.
 2. Ask the Father for what you want in the name of Jesus, and believe you have received it.
Along the way, you must constantly evaluate your level of faith to make sure it is equal to that which you have requested. At the same time, eliminate any short-circuits that might arise from wrong living. Be persistent. Stay patient. I know a fellow who loves football. He sometimes watches the Monday night football game. At times he will start watching that game, turn it off after one quarter or at halftime, and say, "That's a blowout. This other team has no chance." Then he will pick up the paper the next morning and find that the team made a fourth-quarter comeback and won the game. You may be denying yourself some great faith victories by quitting in the third quarter."
I can think of many times this happens in basketball. Like the playoff game with the Clippers and Memphis, they looked like they were done but they mounted a huge comeback. Likewise, I give up very easily when things don't appear to be getting better. The author says sometimes God is about to answer just when we give up faith. A previous book also had this thought. Having our level of faith match the level of the request is hard especially if the request is huge.


"When it comes to prayer, your faith itself is your evidence, and Paul says in Hebrews that faith has "substance." That is to say, faith has a certain real, tangible quality. Perhaps you cannot taste it, see it, or touch it, but Paul says it has "substance." Where do you think it has substance? In heaven! Heaven has substance. It may not be the same molecular structure that we have in this physical world, but there are abundant scriptures to indicate that there is substance to heaven.
In John 20:24-25, John wrote:
Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the Lord." So he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."
Believing is an act of will. Thomas said, "I will not believe." This passage continues with these words:
And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands, and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving for, the traditional King James says, "faithless"] but believing."
Prayer:
Father, faith is so hard. Like Thomas I doubt. Yet Your will for us is faith and not doubt. I think of the text in Kings when the servant of Elisha was overwhelmed because of the approaching armies but he could not see the forces of the unseen spirit world outnumbered those of the physical. My faith is so shallow and yet this is the substance of what makes prayer effective. I have so little faith. I need to practice now those actions and behaviors that demonstrate my faith in who You are and the power You have to answer our prayers. Too often I give up too easily. The things I am asking for are quite impossible right now. Yet, I am confident that as I have already prayed for these things, soon, perhaps tomorrow, You will answer. Help me to grow my faith and to minimize my moments of doubt.