What do you do when you have prayed and nothing has changed? The problem is still there. It looks like nothing is happening (and possibly things are getting worse). There are reasons we can get stuck and not see our miracle, but the first thing you have to settle in your heart is…
God never says no when we ask for something he has promised in his word to believers. NEVER.
God cannot lie, he is bound by his word. If you can find the desired outcome in his word, you can have it and he will never say no to you concerning that request. And it doesn’t matter how impossible it seems! Now that doesn’t mean we see it happen that way in every person’s life, but that has nothing to do with God’s end of the deal. Let’s look at the scriptures concerning this…
For I am the Lord, I change not… Malachi 3:6
God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do?
Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Numbers 23:19Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it. (means “for I am watching over my word to perform it.”) Jeremiah 1:12
So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Isaiah 55:11
My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Psalm 89:34
God is serious, he is not playing around. Whatever he says, it is sure. These scriptures are God saying to us: He does not change, he does not lie, and he watches over his word to perform and bring it to pass. If you don’t believe him, that is your choice. Keep in mind when you hear a promise from God, but you don’t believe him, you are calling God a liar…
- If God promised healing, you can have it.
- If God promised to bless you financially, you can have it.
- If God promised peace, you can have it.
- If God promised to give you wisdom and direction to make decisions, you can have it.
Actually, the truth is, you already have it in the spirit realm, you just don’t see it in the natural yet. Every single thing that God has promised, his answer to you when you ask for it is YES. If you aren’t seeing the answer, then it is time to dig deeper. You don’t “work” in the spirit to make things happen that God has promised, you receive them by faith because it is already granted and accomplished in the spirit realm. You have to learn how to “position yourself in agreement with the word” to see the supernatural promises manifest in your life in the earth realm (that is what you are actually “working” to do).
Some teaching is contrary to this, and it is sad because that is based on experiences people have had, it is not based on God’s word and it calls God a liar. For example, if God promises to heal and we say someone didn’t get healed because “it must not have been God’s will”, but nowhere in the scripture does it say this, we are calling God’s word a lie and making up some other excuse for why we didn’t see the promise come to pass. Don’t ever base your future or expectation on someone else’s faith and their experiences, even if they are a pastor or a priest. If it doesn’t line up with what Jesus said, then it is wrong, no position of authority is higher and only God defines what the truth is. If you’re not getting the answer you need according to what the word says, find out why, because God has not lied to you!
Let’s dive deeper into what it means to “stand” for a miracle and to “position yourself in agreement with the word” to see the manifestation come in your life.
Positioning Yourself For Miracles
Here is how you get into a position to receive the manifestation of a miracle in the natural that is already promised to you in God’s word.
- Be sure you are in agreement with God’s word, find the promise(s) for what you are asking for in the scripture.
- Begin praying and calling (in faith) for the miracle or need to manifest.
- Keep feeding your spirit by focusing and meditating on those scriptures daily to stay in faith. (God’s word is spiritual food.)
- Keep standing in faith, regardless of what you see with your natural eyes while you wait for the manifestation (even if it looks like it is getting worse).
- Be sure you are walking in love and don’t have unforgiveness in your heart.
- Pray in the spirit and engage other spiritual “weapons” when you face opposition to the promised answer.
Finding The Promise
Again, if God promised it, it is sure and his answer to you is yes! With that being said, you cannot receive things contrary to God’s word (at least not by accessing the power of God, at that point you would be in agreement with Satan’s kingdom). For example, you can’t pray for God to bring you another person’s spouse, or for the downfall of a person, you can’t curse a person, etc.
If you are not able to quote a number of scriptures from memory on any given topic, don’t worry! As you get started, you can get a scripture key or just search for scriptures directly related to what your need is online. Be sure to write out the specific scriptures you are using to backup what you are praying for and read them daily, out loud. The best practice is to do it several times a day and it is good to read the word even if you do have it committed to heart. We know we are supposed to be taking regular doses of the word through our “eye gate”, as Psalm 4:21 says “Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.”
The supernatural power is in the word to bring faith to receive the manifestation. You may not understand this at first, but as you focus and meditate daily on those scriptures the words will literally come alive in your heart. It is the moment the word becomes real to you concerning the situation and no matter what the situation looks like, you are fully persuaded that what the word says will actually manifest in your life in the earth realm. That is what faith “looks like”. Does that sound crazy? It may, until you experience it.
Check out what Jesus said, and notice the correlation between receiving what you are asking for and spending time with him, and being in tune with the word. If you aren’t reading (feeding on) the word that relates to your situation regularly, you are missing it! You have to abide in him, and the word has to abide (live!) in you. This is a spiritual key, don’t miss it!
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
John 15:7
Standing In Faith
You may see the answer to your prayer manifest immediately, and other times there will be a season of “standing” before you see it come to pass. It is the time that we are waiting that can really put our faith to the test. If you move out of a position of faith, then you will not see what you are believing for come to pass. You can pray originally to see the answer, and then the next day when you don’t see it yet, start speaking things that sound like doubt. Remember, the same Spirit and power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you! The issue is never whether God will do it or if the power is present to bring it to pass, the issue is whether we are positioned in faith to see it through!
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Romans 8:11
Being in faith and staying there are of key importance, be sure to read this other article that goes more in depth on the topic. Faith That Sees Miracles
Miracle Killers
There is more than one way that a miracle gets aborted. Different things happen in people that can stop the manifestation from occurring in their lives. In the Parable of the Soils in Matthew 13 Jesus explains this to us, in verse 18 he says, “Hear ye the parable of the sower”, and then he continues…
The First Miracle Killer
When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.
Matthew 13:19
The reason this type of person can’t receive a miracle manifestation is because he does not understand the word. If he doesn’t understand the word, he will never learn to make it work in his life. He hears it and it goes right over his head. Jesus even notes here that the “wicked one” (Satan) comes and steals it away from that person’s heart and it is gone immediately, it never makes any sense at all to him so that he fully sees the spiritual truth.
The Second Miracle Killer
20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.
Matthew 13:20-21
The reason this type of person can’t receive a miracle manifestation is because he has no “root”. Think of a new plant just planted. If you pull hard enough on that plant before the roots have started to take in the soil, it will give and come right out of the ground. God is using this to show us that when the truth (promise in the word) comes into this person, they hear it and even become excited because they believe it. Okay, so this person has the activator (faith) required to receive the miracle! However, when trouble arises or they don’t see the answer (miracle) immediately, they lose faith and the word itself that was planted is ripped from their heart. When the word is ripped up, then they have moved out of their position to receive the miracle. These are the people who have faith initially, but they don’t stand in faith (or stay in faith).
The Third Miracle Killer
He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
Matthew 13:22
This person is the type that may have faith to hear, receive, and believe the word for the miracle to come to pass. They may also have the faith to stand and see it through. This person is not losing the miracle because of the opposition or because not seeing the manifestation right away causes them not to believe and get into doubt. This person loses the miracle manifestation because they get distracted and concerned with the cares of this world, riches, or whatever else Satan can grab their attention with. In this instance, it is not the absence of faith, nor the presence of unbelief or doubt that renders the word of no effect to kill the miracle. It is distraction with other things pulling this person’s focus off standing on the word and pursuing that miracle in the spirit to see it manifest.
Reading what Jesus says about all of this, we see Satan tries to steal the word immediately so people never understand how to operate in spiritual things and be successful. If that doesn’t work and they believe the word, then he brings opposition and tribulation trying to get you to lose your faith in the word so you won’t be effective. If that still doesn’t work and he can’t get you to not believe God, then he attempts to get you focused on something else and going in another direction not paying attention.
Now let’s look at what Jesus said next…
Soil That Manifests
But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Matthew 13:23
In the previous verses Jesus referred to the heart of people receiving the seed. The seed is the word of God that promises a certain outcome for your situation. In those three cases he mentioned one person receiving the seed (word) by the wayside, one receiving the word in a stony heart, and one receiving the word in a heart with thorns. “Good ground” in this verse is referencing the “soil” of the heart of this person and is letting us know that the issues present in those other cases are not present in the heart of this person that actually receives the miracle and “bears fruit”. Thus, this person hears the word, understands it, and does not lose faith or get distracted away from receiving their miracle like the other people did.
Unbelief
Unbelief is a miracle killer. This is most likely already evident based on the examples and scriptures noted in this article. However, in addition to pointing out the need to be in faith (which is the opposite of unbelief), let’s address unbelief directly. If you read throughout the scriptures, the only time Jesus did not perform miracles was due to the people’s unbelief. In every other account, he healed people (or delivered them, etc).
And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Matthew 13:58
With that being said, another side tidbit of truth that is quite profound and should challenge you if you wonder if God will heal you or if you think sometimes he does heal and sometimes he doesn’t: There was not a single instance where it was not the will of God to heal anyone. Not one. Nor were there any instances where he said they were sick to teach them something. Nor was there an account of anyone needing to be sick a while longer before they could be healed to teach them anything or as a punishment. Nor do you see anywhere that God didn’t heal because the person didn’t deserve it or deserved to be sick. Again, the only time Jesus did not heal was when the people wouldn’t receive because of their unbelief.
One other thing to ponder…this means it was up to the people to believe and be healed, it was not up to God whether they were healed or not.
Unforgiveness
Unforgiveness in your heart is serious and it blocks your prayers and kills miracles. Period. You have to deal with it, you cannot let it continue. It is a sin not to forgive someone, no matter what they have done to you or someone you care about. This may be easier for some of us to say and do than it is for others. People who have had serious wrongs done to them may really struggle with this. Unforgiveness is a prison and it will poison your heart. Forgiving is for you, it is not for the other person. Sometimes we have to forgive by faith.
What does that mean? It means you make a decision with your will to forgive someone, you pray and say you forgive and release them, even when you don’t feel like you have forgiven them. That is where the faith comes in, eventually by continuing to release them every time they come to your mind or you think negatively about them, your feelings will catch up and you will be free from that bondage in your own heart. When you begin to do this, you have to make a conscience effort to change your thoughts toward that person and to stop speaking anything negatively about them at all.
Still don’t think forgiveness is that big of a deal? Well…
And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
Mark 11:25
Notice the last part where Jesus mentioned forgiveness right after he told us how to pray and believe to receive miracles. There is a reason he said this about forgiveness when telling us how to pray for the things we have need of, and that is because it is relevant to being able to receive those things we are praying for.
The Love Factor
This is another key element when praying for miracles. If you aren’t walking in love, everything else is pointless. This is more than getting past unforgiveness. It is an everyday intentional walk of focusing on loving others. I bolded the verse in relation to faith to move mountains (miracle working faith), but the entire passage is important:
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body [a]to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. 4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not [b]puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, [c]thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails…
1 Corinthians 13:1-8
Seeing The Miracle
All of these things play a role in whether or not we will see the miracle we are believing for manifest in our lives in the earth realm. Until we make these things habit and begin to practice them on a regular basis, our success in this area will be nonexistent, or at best, very limited.
If you have never experienced pushing through in the spirit to actually see the thing you were praying for manifest, how much time are you in the word? Are you staying in faith and not speaking doubt? Are your daily actions those of faith, expecting to receive? If you only pray here and there, and you only read the word once or twice concerning the issue, that is most likely the biggest place you are missing it. You have to be intentional about this, you have to get serious and focused on the word of God concerning the matter and, as Creflo Dollar said, you have to keep your faith on the field!