Spiritual Prescription BELIEVING THAT GOD IS
The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in him, Ps. 64:10.
Have you ever been afraid to admit to God that you were angry with Him? or that you didn't understand His dealings with you? or that you weren't at all sure that He was going to do for you that which you were asking Him to do?
There's a big difference between having faith that God is going to answer your prayers according to your understanding, and believing in God. "He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him" (Heb. 11:6). If we believe that God is, and that He will reward our seeking of Him, we have faith. We do not have to believe that He will reward our seeking of things in the exact way that we have asked. Faith is much more than positive thinking. "When we do not receive the very things we asked for, at the time we ask, we are still to believe that the Lord hears and that He will answer our prayers. We are so erring and shortsighted that we sometimes ask for things that would not be a blessing to us, and our heavenly Father in love answers our prayers by giving us that which will be for our highest good--that which we ourselves would desire if with vision divinely enlightened we could see all things as they really are."--Steps to Christ, p. 96. (Italics supplied.)
Consider the prayer of Moses recorded in Exodus 5:23. He had come at God's command to free the people of Israel from Egypt. He had done as God had instructed in dealing with Pharaoh. And instead of letting the people of Israel go, as Moses had expected, Pharaoh had increased their burdens. Moses' prayers for the deliverance of the people seemed unanswered. He went to God saying, "Since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people, neither hast thou delivered thy people at all"! Moses didn't understand God's plan--and apparently wasn't too happy with the results right then--but he still believed in God, and continued to communicate with Him, telling God how he felt. His faith was evidenced, not because of some pious words, but by continuing to come to God, regardless of what answers he received.
The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in him, Ps. 64:10.
Have you ever been afraid to admit to God that you were angry with Him? or that you didn't understand His dealings with you? or that you weren't at all sure that He was going to do for you that which you were asking Him to do?
There's a big difference between having faith that God is going to answer your prayers according to your understanding, and believing in God. "He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him" (Heb. 11:6). If we believe that God is, and that He will reward our seeking of Him, we have faith. We do not have to believe that He will reward our seeking of things in the exact way that we have asked. Faith is much more than positive thinking. "When we do not receive the very things we asked for, at the time we ask, we are still to believe that the Lord hears and that He will answer our prayers. We are so erring and shortsighted that we sometimes ask for things that would not be a blessing to us, and our heavenly Father in love answers our prayers by giving us that which will be for our highest good--that which we ourselves would desire if with vision divinely enlightened we could see all things as they really are."--Steps to Christ, p. 96. (Italics supplied.)
Consider the prayer of Moses recorded in Exodus 5:23. He had come at God's command to free the people of Israel from Egypt. He had done as God had instructed in dealing with Pharaoh. And instead of letting the people of Israel go, as Moses had expected, Pharaoh had increased their burdens. Moses' prayers for the deliverance of the people seemed unanswered. He went to God saying, "Since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people, neither hast thou delivered thy people at all"! Moses didn't understand God's plan--and apparently wasn't too happy with the results right then--but he still believed in God, and continued to communicate with Him, telling God how he felt. His faith was evidenced, not because of some pious words, but by continuing to come to God, regardless of what answers he received.
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