Mark 11:24 For this reason I say to you, All things that you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and you will have them. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substantiation of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Some people only know two points about prayer: First, they pray on their knees for what they do not have, and second, they have it; God has given it to them. Some do not realize that there is another event in between these two--the event of faith. Suppose I pray for a watch and one day say, "Thank God, He has already heard my prayer." Although my hands are still empty, I am clear within that I already have the watch. Indeed, after a few days the watch arrives. We cannot be concerned with just two events: not having and then having. We must be concerned with a third event--an additional event between not having and having, in which God gives a promise, and then we believe and rejoice over it. Perhaps we have to wait three days before we actually receive the watch. But in our spirit, we received it three days ago already. A Christian should experience this kind of receiving in the spirit. If a person never experiences this kind of receiving in the spirit, he does not have faith. If the faith is already there, but the things have not materialized, one has to remind God with praise. If we have the inward assurance that "we have received it," what more do we need to pray for? Many Christians have the experience that as soon as their prayer strikes faith, they can no longer continue to pray. They can only say, "Lord! I praise You." They have to keep their faith and praise, "Lord! I praise You. You have heard my prayer. I praise You because You answered my prayer a month ago."
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, Messages for Building Up New Believers, pp. 159-161. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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