BECOMING MORE SUCCESSFUL AT RECEIVING FROM GOD

The greatest privilege of being born again, next to having our sins forgiven and therefore being able to come into God’s presence to fellowship and worship, is being able to ask and receive from God what we desire (John 16:23).

This intention/will of God is not diminished by experiences we may have had as believers. God cannot lie (Heb 6:18) and since we have been given this privilege, it is only wise that we busy ourselves for the rest of our lives discovering how to exploit it fully to our advantage.

Without doubt, it is the believer that is able to exploit this privilege the most that will do the most for God on this side of eternity. All achievements (both personal and for others on behalf of God) involve having God intervene in the affairs of this life. This intervention is predicated on being able to successfully ask and receive from Him.

We must have come across various other reasons why we do not receive from God when we ask: 1 when we ask outside His will (1 John 5:14-15; James 4:3) 2 when we live in unforgiveness (Mark 11:25-26) 3 when we are in willful disobedience (2 Cor 10:6) 4 when we are tight fisted (2 Cor 9:6) e.t.c. The focus of this write up however is on asking and receiving by FAITH, assuming all other issues are taken care of.

There is a correct dynamic that Jesus outlined in scripture. Mark 11:24: whatever you desire (specific) when you pray (ask) BELIEVE you receive (are given) them and you shall have them.

Whatever you ask God for, He gives you right there and then, no strings attached. But God is a Spirit, just as we are spirit beings (housed in physical bodies). Whatever God gives us therefore is given in the realm of the spirt to our spirit (it is not physical).

That is how come He gives us at the very moment that we ask (not when it shows up materially). Whether what we ask is tangible (can be seen or heard or touched or felt) or intangible (something spiritual or mental or beyond physical materiality).

Now we see why we have to BELIEVE that He gives us, we can’t see it, feel it, taste it or touch it yet. And our belief is anchored on what Jesus said in His word. Note though that we can only believe what we have heard or known (read up, studied). As believers, we have to get familiar with God’s word beyond what we hear preached/taught/said.

Now, if we believe we receive from God when we ask, it passes from God’s hand to ours spiritually (otherwise it doesn’t). But what we ask for needs to intervene in the realm of materiality, it is of no use to us if it does not. So, what do we do after we have asked and received and it has not yet ‘hit’ natural materiality?

We believe that we have it already, that is what. We believe that we have it already because God said so. He already has passed what we asked to us (spiritually), except we do not believe Him. But we believe God, that is why we are believers!

To us, we know we have what we asked for already because God gave it to us (1 John 5:14-15). To a third party, we BELIEVE we have it (if we need to talk to them about it). They cannot SEE it yet, neither can they SEE what we believe in our heart, so if we tell them we know we have it, they may say we are lying or think we are ‘nuts’. They may talk us out of God’s word.

Beyond this, if we believe we have received what we asked from God, it will not be ‘a matter of our heart’ only, it will show on the outside. Our attitude and speech will change. Our attitude will not be that of anxiety, depression, anger, covetousness, resentment, envy e.t.c over what we do not yet have in the realm of natural materiality. It will be that of joy, assurance, confidence and most importantly thanksgiving/praise because we know it exists (with us) in the realm of the spirit already. We know it because we walk by faith (what we believe, the word of God) and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7).

If we carry on this way, what God already passed to us in the realm of the spirit and we have kept with us (by keeping our belief) will find its way into natural (physical or mental) materiality, depending on what we asked for. Abraham did the same thing for Isaac to come (Rom 4:17).

This is how God creates things for us out of ‘nothing’. But it is not out of ‘nothing’ per se (for the spiritually minded), He creates them from/by His word which we believe and continue to act on. God’s word is alive and powerful!

We believe we receive (God gives) when we ask. After this, we believe we HAVE because God gave and we received. If we maintain this position, no force in the world (not Satan’s or a zillion ‘enemies’) may stop it from showing up in natural materiality. Can they stop God?

All that we do in line with what we believe till it shows up is an expression of our FAITH. And because there is always a time lapse between when we ask and receive and when it materializes, we ALWAYS accompany our faith with patience (Heb 6:12). Faith without patience does not endure, it fails along the way. Patience rejuvenates faith, keeps it vibrant.

Believing is of the heart, faith is of the ‘doing’. Believing is the precursor of faith. Faith is always expressed, so ‘doing’ here includes physical action of doing something, thinking or speaking and these all derive from God’s word we believe with our heart.

Meanwhile, there is real difference between following the word of God as discussed above and following eastern (demonic) religions of chanting stuff into existence or playing the mind game of the so called ‘laws of attraction’. This, as discussed, is following what Jesus said, let us explore and exploit it fully and get great things done for the kingdom!

Note: This form of prayer is sufficient for things that relate to us as individuals, where only our will is involved. Where another’s will is involved, it will not be sufficient (other forms of prayer cover this). Also, this is not the only form of prayer we pray for ourselves but the same principle applies to all.


Pastor Gboye Omolayo is the Resident Pastor of Church@Allen (House of Prayer Int'l), Allen TX, USA. He is a prolific writer and preacher who believes the efficacy of the word of God and the potency of the works of the Holy Spirit are still available to the Church today, as they were at the Church’s infancy. He is the publisher of this blog.



Photo Credit: Beautiful Thorns