If your
spiritual reception of God’s prayer answers seems amiss, it’s time to go
through the biblical spiritual wellness checklist for some deep introspection
and correction.
June’s Awakening, Day 2
If God
answers ‘Yes’, He is increasing your faith. If ‘Wait’, He is increasing your
patience. If ‘No’, He has something better for you.
—Nicky
Gumbel
I have saved this discussion about
prayer hinderers for this section on spiritual disciplines, for as you become
more spiritually aware and mature, it may, on occasion, seem as if your prayers
are not being answered or you are not hearing clearly from God. Oftentimes, we
simply must be patient and wait, but the Bible also speaks about prayer
hinderers, so we should be cognizant of that and diligently check our spiritual
wellness too.
Spiritual
Wellness Checklist—Prayer Hinderers:
1.
Unconfessed Sin. [Your sins are all forgiven, but you should be cognizant and
repentant of them.]
If
I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has
surely listened and has heard my prayer. Psalm 66:18–19 NIV
Therefore
confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be
healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16
NIV
2. Unbelief
or Lack of Faith. [Double-minded doubt casts us wavering on the waves of the
sea instead of standing firmly on the solid Rock.]
And
without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him
must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews
11:6 NIV
If
any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all
without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must
believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea,
blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything
from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. James
1:5–8 NIV
If
you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” Matthew
21:22 NIV
3.
Disobedience. [Willful disregard for God’s Word will bring discipline and the
fullness of the consequences of your poor choices.]
But
the Lord said to me, “Tell them, ‘Do not go up and fight, because I will not be
with you. You will be defeated by your enemies.’” So I told you, but you would
not listen. You rebelled against the Lord’s command and in your arrogance you
marched up into the hill country. You came back and wept before the Lord, but
he paid no attention to your weeping and turned a deaf ear to you.
Deuteronomy 1:42–43, 45 NIV
Dear
friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and
receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what
pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus
Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. 1 John
3:21–23 NIV
4.
Unforgiveness. [With the same measure that you have been forgiven, you are
required to forgive others.]
For
if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father
will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father
will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6:14–15 NIV
And
when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so
that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Mark 11:25
NIV
5. Wrong
Motives. [Asking God to satisfy and promote self alone will often be ignored.]
You
desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you
want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.
When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you
may spend what you get on your pleasures. James 4:2–3 NIV
6. Setting
Up Idols. [An idol is anything that takes priority in your life over God.]
“Son of man, these men have set up
idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces.
Should I let them inquire of me at all? “Therefore say to the people of Israel,
‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Repent! Turn from your idols and
renounce all your detestable practices! Ezekiel 14:3, 6 NIV
Tomorrow we will complete our
spiritual wellness checklist to make sure that our lives and prayers are not
hindered by the blockade of an insincere or superficial self. God wants
substance—a deep, mature, sacrificial spiritual wholeness and wellness.
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