Exodus 12:14-51, 13:1-16; Matthew 20:29-34, 21:1-22; Psalms 25:16-22; Proverbs 6:12-15

“Jesus replied, ‘Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, “Go, throw yourself into the sea,” and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.’” (Matthew 21:21-22 NIV)

An entire month of reading the Bible and blogging daily (for the most part–I’ve definitely been a day late before)! What a wonderful journey! I realize with a toddler, this may not always be a sustainable daily rhythm for me, but for now, I am loving the accountability and creative outlet for myself. Sometimes, you just have to go for it!

I was drawn into writing about the verse above because, to be honest, I have a hard time with it. The last verse sums up the paragraph, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” Now, I don’t know about you, but there have been times when I truly thought that something would be the right step or the next path, or when I trusted that something would be given to me–and then it wasn’t. It’s hard to read verses like this in the Bible and wonder if the problem is yourself, and your level of belief, or if the Lord really didn’t answer your prayer despite what the Bible says. I have thought this on many an occasion in the past, and I’m sure there are others who could identify with me in this.

The first question I have to ask myself is, in those circumstances, did I really believe? I have been guilty of convincing myself that something would be the right thing to do, or would make the most sense, and pray into it. But, does my heart actually recognize it as something I believe in, OR am I praying into it because it makes sense?

The second question I have to ask, and this one is harder to identify, is do I believe this is what God would want? Trusting God means letting go of the things we think would be best or our agendas in pursuit of God’s plan. And as we’ve seen from our previous reading, sometimes God opens a door we could have never seen coming.

So how do we reconcile the idea that if we believe, we will receive, and understanding what we should be believing for? I don’t have a perfect answer, but I know that when our hearts know what’s right, we will have no problem praying into what the Lord has for us. I think understanding this comes from a developing relationship, constant prayer, letting go of our own agenda around God, and peace in whatever the outcome becomes. Only in this space can we accept these verses and trust the Lord to give us the belief to ask for what we desire and need from Him.

With this, I believe the Lord is calling us into praying with open hands–not physically, but emotionally. Praying with open hands represents our willingness to put Him in control–here is what I hold dear, but ultimately it is yours. As humans, we don’t have control over the circumstances around us, but we know who does. Having a posture of open hands means we are ready to give over what we need to, or receive what the Lord desires to give us. Then there cannot be disappointment, because we were open to whatever the circumstances may be, because we trust the Lord and His leading.

Today, let’s ask the Lord to show us what it would mean for us to pray with open hands. Maybe it means physically holding out our hands as a prayer posture, showing the Lord that we are trusting his control. Maybe it’s a mindset of letting go. But if we believe that the Lord is listening and has our best interest at heart, then we’ll know that He is in fact answering our prayers and guiding us in the way He desires us to go.