It takes a measure of faith to pray... I mean, you wouldn't be praying to the Lord if you didn't actually believe that He is there, that He hears, and that He is able to provide you the answer you seek, would you?
So now we need to build on that measure of faith by reading and studying the Word. The reason for building up and strengthening our faith is so that we can hang onto it, because if we don't hang onto it, it will weaken and disappear.
Most everyone realizes that hanging onto our faith is the hard part, but at the same time, this is what makes faith faith. If what we pray for always happened instantaneously, little faith would be required, just the small, weak measure of faith that we all start out with. (Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Hebrews 11:6)
Real, substantial, mountain-moving faith comes by hearing the Word of God (the text of the Bible) repeatedly and regularly. Our hearing can be internally accessed by silent reading of the Word, or it can be heard externally, whether we read the Word aloud ourselves or listen to it being read by another.
It simply is not enough just to hear testimonies of others having applied faith successfully. No! Hearing the Word of the Lord is the only way anyone anywhere can strengthen his own faith.
It also is simply not enough just to hear the Word and then try to hang on to our faith by sheer determination without squelching our physical feelings.
At the start, we need to realize that, immediately as we pray, the thing prayed for is created (or happens) instantaneously in the spiritual dimension, even though we feel no differently, we do not see it, we do not hear it, we do not smell it, and we do not taste it. That is because our senses are limited by the physical dimension.
But feelings are alien to faith. We never feel faith. We simply come to believe-know-realize that the object of our prayer has already taken place on another dimension, and we then start praising and thanking the Lord for already having brought it about. And we continue to do this until we do see the physical manifestation.
Trying to operate in faith and measure the results of prayer with our physical senses is like trying to solve a mathematical problem using intuition. We have to apply the right tools to any given problem. The wrong tool, even applied in the right way, will yield nothing; nor will the right tool applied in the wrong way.
The point where the spiritual touches the physical feelings is when you sense the Presence of the Lord, the point at which tears (living water) flow, and the Glory comes down.
The writer spent her early years in the legal arena and the last 23 years in property management. She has been an avid Bible student since 1987 and became an online publisher in 2001. She still publishes her bi-weekly ezine, 'elf Expressions Ezine, a collection of positive tips, hints, and advice offered with humor, inspiration, and other goodies for anyone who is inclined to read. The emphasis these days is on the finer points of Christianity. Guidance, mentoring, inspiration, English lessons, editing, and proofreading services for entrepreneurs and online marketers are also offered. Subscribe if you like at http://www.elfexpressionsezine.com.