BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

Have you ever wished that every time you prayed the prayer of faith you got instant, visible results? I certainly have. I think it would be wonderful if whenever I asked God for something, it showed up immediately. I’d like it a lot! If, for instance, I could believe for finances or for a manifestation of healing in my body, and the moment I believed I received—boom!—there it would be. I’ve experienced such instantaneous miracles on occasion, and they make receiving from God a whole lot easier. They’re also very exciting, so I’m always on the lookout for them. I wish they happened every time I pray. But they don’t. In most instances, I have to add patience to my faith to see God’s promises come to pass in my life (Hebrews 6:12). I have to stand for a while on the Word of God before I see anything in this natural realm begin to change. Why? Because faith is a process. Unless one of the gifts of the Spirit is operating along with it, faith generally works over time. You can see what I mean by reading Mark 11:14. There, when Jesus said to the unfruitful fig tree, “No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever,” even though He said it by faith, initially nothing appeared to happen. The fig tree just stood there looking as healthy as ever. It showed no outward sign of change at all. The next day, however, Jesus and His disciples passed that way again and saw an entirely different scene. “They saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away” (verses 20-21). The fact that the tree dried up from the roots indicates Jesus’ faith went into operation the moment He released it. But its effects were invisible for a while because it began its work underground, where it couldn’t be seen. The same thing is usually true in our lives as believers. When we release our faith for something, it goes to work first in the unseen realm of the spirit. It starts by changing things there, and as we continue to stay in faith, those changes eventually become outwardly visible. What we’re believing for manifests, and our faith becomes seen. The time between when we release our faith and when we see the fig tree dry up (or our healing manifest, or our finances come in) is the hard part of faith. That’s the part where we must refuse to be moved by contrary circumstances. It’s the part where, even though nothing appears to be happening, we must keep believing God and resist the temptation to doubt. How do we do that? By following the instructions Jesus gave to His disciples in Mark 11:22-25. When they marveled at the fig tree, He said: "Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses." From Sicker and Sicker…to Well-er and Well-er Notice, according to those verses, words are the key to releasing your faith. It doesn’t go to work until you believe God’s Word in your heart, say it with your mouth, and expect what you say to come to pass. A lot of Christians don’t seem to understand this. They pray sincerely and ask God for what they need, but that’s all they do. They just keep asking and asking. If they need healing, they pray, “Lord, please heal me! Lord, please heal me!” but they don’t take the next step. They don’t take their stand on the Word and say, “Lord, 1 Peter 2:24 tells me that by Jesus’ stripes I was healed, so I BELIEVE I RECEIVE MY HEALING NOW. I thank You for it, and from now on I declare I am healed!” * * * * * article continues on p. 28 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * “We can rest, knowing that if we’ve done our part to put the good seed of God’s Word into a good-soil heart, God will give the increase.”—Gloria Copeland * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Points to Get You There: It would be wonderful if every time you believed God for something it showed up immediately, but that’s not usually how faith works. Normally, it’s a process. Here are some points to get you there: 1) Faith is released when you believe God’s Word in your heart and say it with your mouth, expecting what you say to come to pass. Mark 11:23 2) Jesus dealt with the unfruitful fig tree by speaking words of faith to it. Mark 11:14 3) Jesus’ faith went to work immediately on the roots of the tree, but the results didn’t become visible until the following day. Mark 11:20 4) When you speak words of faith in the midst of contrary circumstances, you are talking like God does and like Abraham did. Romans 4:17 5) Be patient and stick with the faith process and what you have believed God for will manifest. Hebrews 6:12 BVOV : 27

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