“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”
Mark 11:24 KJV
God hears your prayers and encourages you to pray for the desires of your heart. I’ve heard preachers say that God promises to meet our needs but no where in the Bible does He ever promise to give us our desires. Apparently, those preachers have never read Mark 11:24. That’s why it’s crucial to know your Bible. When you read and study Scripture, God will show you things that He wants you to know. And this is something He wants you to know. That’s why Jesus said it, and Mark recorded it.
God truly wants to give His children the desires of their hearts. And just like a loving parent delights in rewarding an obedient and responsive child, our Heavenly Father delights in rewarding His obedient and responsive children.
God wants to give you the desires of your heart. That’s why He instructs you to ask. But he requires you to believe.
“What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”
Why is believing important?
Hebrews 11:6 says, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”
Without faith, you cannot please God, for God answers the prayers of those who trust Him. If you don’t believe, how can you trust? And there is nothing God hates worse than unbelief.
Psalm 37:3-4 tells us, “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
So the first thing you must do before God will bless you with the desires of your heart is to trust in Him.
- You trust that He truly exists.
- You trust that He’ll take care of you.
- You trust that He hears your prayers.
- You trust that He makes no mistakes.
- You trust that He will always do what’s best for you.
- You trust that He will answer your prayers in His good time.
As a result of trusting in the Lord, we behave righteously. Then when we choose to draw close to our Creator in fellowship, He will give us the desires of our hearts because He knows that we truly desire to please Him.