“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24

If you are anything like me, you have some speculation about what Jesus is saying here. Do you really believe that whatever you ask for in prayer will be given to you? Or do you not even bother God with your prayers because, after all, he has to worry about big things like cancer or  people in third world countries without food or clean water.

If we’re really honest with ourselves, we are afraid to ask God and believe that He will show up. But God is bigger than all of that and he wants to hear our requests and what’s on our hearts because he is our Father. God wants a personal relationship with us just as a parent would want with their own child. Jesus talks about this kind of relationship in Matthew saying, “Which of you, if his son asks for bread will give him a stone? Or if he asks for fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (7:9-11)

We have to understand that prayer is relationship. It’s a communication with God. When we are in right relationship with God, our hearts will be positioned to ask for the things that really matter. David was said to be a man after God’s own heart and he writes, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4) Notice that David says “delight” yourself in God, meaning you have found happiness and joy in God. When God becomes your everything, the desires of your heart change and are in line with His will. God is our Heavenly Father that loves His children. He wants to give us good gifts, we just have to believe.

The second key to receiving gifts from God is faith. We have a great definition of faith in the book of Hebrews: “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (11:1) When we ask for something we have to see it happen in the supernatural realm before it comes into the natural. This means we have to see it come into existence in our hearts before it is actually right in front of us because, “We live by faith and not by sight.” (2 Cor. 5:7) God is not moved by need, He is moved by faith. There are numerous stories of people in the Bible who believed in faith for things and God answered. (read Hebrews 11)

So I challenge you to believe in faith for the desires of your heart but just know that God is not a bank or a wishing well–He wants a relationship with you and wants to take care of you. We are children of the King of kings and we are heir to the throne of the kingdom of God. So ask for anything…

“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” -Phil 4:19 

 
When was the last time you gave up on your dreams for God? Has God ever asked you to let go of the very thing that He gave to you as a gift? What has God promised you for your life and have you been making that promise an idol? Abraham was promised that he would have decedents that would out-number the stars through his son, Isaac…yet God told Abraham to sacrifice his only son. 

After all Abraham and Sarah had been through to have Isaac, God asks to sacrifice him!? That doesn’t make sense! What is the logic in killing the one person that will bring about a great nation? Abraham had to have a great amount of faith to be willing to kill his dreams, knowing that God had made a promise for future generations to come from him. He held to those promises and raised a knife to his son. At that moment God provided a ram for the sacrifice. I’m sure Abraham was overwhelmed with reverence and awe to God. I can just imagine the sigh coming from him followed up by tears. 

God asks us to do things that are crazy and don’t make any sense at times. Little by little, He tests us to see where are faith is and to see if we are willing to give up our dreams for him. He wanted Abraham to sacrifice his son because his son was possibly an idol to him–if Isaac was the key to all of these decedents, then I’m sure Abraham held very tightly to his son. But God wanted his whole heart and for him not be possessive of the gifts that were given to him. 

Whatever God is calling you to give up, know that it is to better your understanding of God and all that he has for you. Walk in faith towards Him and He will guide you every step of the way. When we do this, He gives us more than we could ever ask or imagine.

“Now to him who is able to do more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations for ever and ever, Amen.” -Eph 3:20-21                

-Nick 

“Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob.”

I want to be apart of the generation that stands in the holy place of the Lord. In His presence there is life and joy that is incomparable to anything that this world can offer. There can be so many idols and distractions that cloud our vision to see God’s unfailing love in our lives. If you struggle to hear from God then find out what is in your heart that is not of Him but of the world. Starve yourself of the world’s desires and taste and see that the Lord is good.

In Him,

-nick

It’s interesting what happens when you reach the summit of a mountain. There is a sense of accomplishment and strength that floods over you as soon as you take the last step to reach the top. All the hard work of climbing seems to fade away and you are overtaken by an incredible view.

I climbed a mountain once in college. It wasn’t anything to crazy like the Himalayans or Mt. Everest. It was a little mountain in Mexico of about 14,000 feet. The climb wasn’t too bad, other than all the jagged rocks and cactus needles. I was traveling with a group of fellow students and I had volunteered to carry all the food and supplies in my pack. Needless to say, it felt like I had a small man on my back while climbing up the mountain in the middle of a desert. But, I wanted to make sure everyone knew that I was a strong leader…Ha!

When we were about a hundred yards away from the top, something in me exploded with adrenalin. I began to jog past everyone else to reach to summit because I wanted to see the view first. As I reached to the top I looked back and saw that everyone was still slowly hiking up. I turned to see an epic view. I was struck by how quiet it was, other than the wind howling. Below I could see the path that we had took. I saw a highway with a semi driving on it that looked like the size of a hot wheels toy car. I looked up and the sun was beaming down on me. I closed my eyes and took it all in. Suddenly, a knot formed in my throat, my heart ached and I began to cry. God spoke to me in a very small whisper, “Look at how far I have brought you. Look at the mountains I have moved for you. Look at where I am going to take you.” My mind was flooded with memories of the past–mistakes that I have made, trials that I have overcome, abuse I have come out of and all the accomplishments that I have had up to that point. I put my hands up and I worshipped God for all that he had done. “Thank you, Jesus,” I whispered as tears began to stream down my face.

I had about five minutes alone with God until the rest of the group joined me at the summit. I wasn’t able to pull myself together in time to have the “strong, put-together,” persona for the group.  They saw my tears and the emotion that I couldn’t hold back and a wave of emotion fell over the group as others began to cry. We sang “God of Wonders” together after everyone had reached the top– thanking and praising God for His awesome creation and for His provision in our lives.

I will never forget that day. It was such a symbol of the journey that I have had in following after Christ. It is so easy to lose sight of what my purpose is and where God is leading me at times when I had been climbing and going through deserts. That day, I had to realize that the journey is just as important as the destination. God whispered to me on the mountain top but I believe He speaks in a loud voice in the times where I feel, pain, anger, sadness and neglect.

I thank and praise God for the mountain top that I am on today, knowing that I have been through valleys and deserts in the past few years and knowing that there are more mountains to climb and more deserts to go through. From up here I can see clearly where God’s hand has been in my life.

Wherever you are in your journey, remember that God is with you. When you reach the summit of faith, where things are clear and the view is spectacular, praise and thank Him. And when you are in the darkest times and you cannot see anything clearly, praise Him because he is faithful and will never let you down.

Listen to my  songs, “Are You Here” and “Weary Land” if you can relate to being in a desert or valley. Know that through Christ, you have already won the battle!

Be Blessed!

-Nick