Faith more than just a word

I must say that I have really enjoyed using the John Baillie prayers as part of my daily liturgical routine. So a big tick there to add to the praying scripture and the other things I do.

Todays reading is from the father of the Protestant Reformation Martin Luther (1483-1546). Now the part that really jumped out at me were these simple statements "Prayer is a special exercise of faith. Faith makes the prayer acceptable because it believes that either the prayer will be answered, or that something better will be given instead."

I found this quite challenging. Do I actually believe this?
Do I always pray in Faith?
Is that why my prayer does not always seem to answered? Or maybe my prayer is just not answered in the way I expect or want. I do however also understand "No" is an answer.

He goes onto say this: " This clear statement which says: directly he who does not trust will receive nothing, neither that which he asks for or anything better."

This is a very strong statement. Very black and white, not too much wiggle room here. So where do I stand?

What is faith? Well here are some definitions.

faith

noun

1.    1.

complete trust or confidence in someone or something.

"this restores one's faith in politicians"

synonyms:		trust, belief, confidence, conviction, credence, reliance, dependence;

2.    2.

strong belief in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual conviction rather than proof.

"bereaved people who have shown supreme faith"

synonyms:

religion, church, sect, denomination, persuasion, religious persuasion, religious belief,belief, code of belief, ideology, creed, teaching, dogma, doctrine "she gave her life for her faith"

 

Biblical Statement:

Hebrews 11:1: "Now faith (pi'stis) is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." This passage concerning the function of faith in relation to the covenant of God is often used as a definition of faith.

I have really been challenged to look at this as an issue in my life. Am I operating in faith in my prayer life and life in general.It is as though I have not consciously thought about this as an integral part of my prayer life. It was just an assumption. Which is a dangerous premise. It is not that I have not had answered prayer because I have lots of examples.

However if I can consciously interact with faith can I do much better. Even if it is only to say as the man in the Bible "Lord help me in my unbelief." 
 

 Is this a challenge that I like? Not really! Is this a challenge that I need? Absolutely!!

Have a faith filled week. Until next time

Paul