There are no short cuts in dealing with God; no quick fixes for prayer and faith. “God understands,” they say; “Send Him an email and He will answer when He is ready.” An email to God sounds silly but a lot of our communication with Him is just as silly and superficial. The only real opportunities in life come in face-to-face meetings. As theologian Martin Buber once said, “All real living is meeting.” God deserves and requires the personal touch. You can’t communicate with God in a casual manner and expect Him to answer in a direct manner. He demands the respect and formal courtesy His position warrants. He only responds to earnest heartfelt persistent face-to-face encounters. Ones where people come prepared to hear from Him, not just speak to Him. Faith does not come by speaking to Him. Faith comes by hearing from Him – directly.
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the (spoken) word of Christ. Romans 10:17
I am learning that one of the forgotten secrets of faith in God is the necessity of effective face time with God. This is when heart changes occur and when we receive the yes or no answers concerning our requests. A ‘no’ or ‘not now’ answer stops the process, but a ‘yes’ answer elevates one on to faith, and then on to mountain moving prayer. Only after you know that it is the will of God can you pray fearlessly, passionately, and persistently. Nothing can stop the individual who firmly believes that the wind in his sails comes directly from God.
Comments
Wow! That was good!