On two separate occasions, I prayed for the same things. One time, my prayers were answered exactly as I had prayed while the other time, my prayer was answered but not exactly as I prayed. I wondered what was the difference in those instances. Why did my prayers, which all related to the promises of God as revealed in scripture, come to pass once and not exactly the other time?
So intrigued by this, I asked my husband about it one day and the response he gave is exactly what I am writing about today. In Matthew 9:28-29, two blind men came to Jesus crying “Son of David, have mercy on us.” Jesus immediately responded “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” To this question, the men answered “Yes Lord”. And Jesus’ response is exactly what I believe made the difference with my prayers that yielded different results. “According to your faith, let it be to you.”
As He went about healing people, Jesus often referenced the faith of those who desired healing. He made statements such as “Your faith has made you well (Matthew 9:22),” “Woman, you have great faith your request is granted” (Matthew 15:28). What does this mean for us?
We pray prayers that are in line with the Word of God and sometimes they don’t get answered or perhaps they are partially answered. The connection between my prayers and God’s response is often my level of faith. When I prayed the same prayers on separate occasions, I was in a different place each time. The first time, I believed the prayers I was praying, but there was fear and doubt still working in me. I chose a fear + faith combination which yielded some results, but not exactly what I was looking for.
Fear and Faith cannot go together. Fear combats your prayers and sabotages your results.
Fear says, “This probably won’t work, but I’ll try it anyway”
Faith says, “This has to work because it lines up with the Word of God.”(Isaiah 55:11)
Fear says, “There’s so much that can go wrong.”
Faith says, “But God is working all things out for my good because I am called according to his purposes.”(Romans 8:28)
Fear says, “This hasn’t worked for others before.”
Faith says, “With God nothing is impossible.”(Luke 1:37)
The second time I prayed about the same situation, I chose a faith + the Word of God combination and that, that yielded the exact results I was seeking.
Choose faith in your situation. According to your faith, God will stand by His promises for your life. According to your faith, your prayers are answered. Small faith is better than no faith, yes. But small faith will also produce small results. I want faith that yields great results, results that produce exactly what God has stated in His word. I want faith that changes situations, faith that moves the heart of God.
Lord, your word says according to my faith, it will be done for me. Grow my measure of faith so that I yield more results. Grow my faith so that my prayers are effective, not just something I pray because it’s what I’m supposed to do as a believer. Give me faith to really believe you for the impossible.
