June 5

“Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your transgressions. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions.” Mark 11:24-26.

There is a precious secret to prayer in these verses. The Lord would have us believe that we have already received what we ask! It is not a question of when or if He will grant our request, it is that it has already been granted. The key is a thankful heart; one that gives thanks for what is not yet seen. Our minds cry out with doubt. We say, “Well it seems that all my prayers have not been answered.” But if we examine our attitude more carefully, we are likely to recall that we had doubts about the prayer being answered when we made the initial request. Yes, the Lord expects us to look ahead in confident faith that the request is already granted. As a preceding verse says, “Have faith in God.” (Mark 11:22).

We are also called to forgive others. As in the familiar passage called the Lord’s Prayer, we find mention of the fact that our trespasses will not be forgiven if we do not forgive others. Let the full impact of that strike our hearts. We are to be marked by a forgiving attitude for others—just as we ourselves have been forgiven by the Father.

Lord, I ask that You work on my faith today. It is not a matter of how much faith I have; it is a matter of upon whom my faith rests. Let it rest in Jesus only. In Him there is no room for doubt or analysis of my qualifications. You have met all the needs of Your grace when Jesus died for me. Let me trust only in Him. Let me know with confidence that my prayers are answered fully. Thank You and Amen.
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