When we pray, we must realize that God always has our best interests at heart. Someone once said, ‘good is often the enemy of best.’ Too often believers will settle for what’s good, often missing out on God’s best for them. In the realm of prayer, patience is what separates good from best. Abraham inherited the promise of a child, through ‘faith and patience,’ not faith only. We have a tendency to compromise in the waiting game, ready to settle for what appears ‘good’ and missing out on God’s answer to our original prayer. Join Carl now as he encourages you to stand strong during the waiting period and receive God’s best.
Here is a complete transcript of the podcast…(below)
“Friend, do you trust God to deliver in the areas you have need of? Do you sometimes find it difficult to trust a God you can’t see? Well, we as believers walk by faith, not by sight and He most certainly is to be trusted because the scripture attests to His trustworthiness! Sometimes circumstances make it seem like God didn’t come through for us, or perhaps in the timing you had in mind or perhaps you were surprised by the way God answered your prayer. Today we will look at some scriptures about trusting God and believing for His best when we pray. Always bear in mind when you pray, that your loving Heavenly Father always has his son or daughter’s best interests at heart. The trouble is when we pray, sometimes we have ideas of how we want our prayers answered. We need to be careful because false expectations can lead to wounding. When we pray, we need to believe, we don’t need to know how or when God is going to answer our prayers; that is up to Him, not you. We must always approach God with a contrite heart in the practice of petition, expecting God’s best for us in any given situation and trusting He has our best interests covered. We also need to be patient for His timing in answering our prayers.
A recent, classic example of this was when my wife and I believed the Lord for a house. We had saved enough for a down payment, our application was made, and I had set my heart on a specific house I had visited. I really believed God was going to let me have it. Well, the bottom line is this; the house I really wanted didn’t end up happening. I was set on the idea of the Lord giving us this house and I knew He was able to; I didn’t doubt it for one minute. I found myself most disappointed when the news broke about the house going to another family. After getting quiet before the Lord, I remonstrated and made it clear I wasn’t a happy camper about this disappointing news. After some time, He spoke to me and asked, “What was wrong with that house?” I answered there was nothing wrong with it. (I wanted to move our stuff in it right away!) Again, he asked, “What was wrong with that house?” After some time, He made it clear to me that there was plenty wrong with the house as it was not my heart’s desire, but I was actually compromising my desire by trying to buy it.
Friend, I was selling myself short when I compared this house to the list of my heart’s desire there were several items missing off the list! To cut a long story short, I let go, cast my care and placed the whole thing in God’s hands, knowing that He had a better plan. The point is, we can compromise God’s perfect choice for us by settling for what is ‘good.’ Someone once said that “Good is the enemy of best,” and that is very valuable insight. We have to be patient AND trust God in order for his perfect choice to manifest. That, my friends, is the difficult part as we can get antsy in the waiting period prior to the manifestation of what we’ve prayed for. The scripture clearly states that it was through “faith and patience” that Abraham inherited the promise, not through faith alone (Hebrews 6:12-13).
Only three weeks later, the Lord opened up an opportunity for us to purchase an incredible home that fulfilled literally every desire of our hearts. God is good; we had distinct favor in the purchasing process with the seller, lender and so on. God made it clear that this was His perfect choice for us, and His choice far surpassed the house I originally set my heart upon. God indeed had a better plan all along and I needed to trust Him with it. He is such an awesome, majestic, kind and wonderful God! He knows what’s best for us even when we don’t. Remember, the Father always has our best interests at heart and knows His children intimately. Proverbs 3:5–6, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; And lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he shall direct thy paths.”
Friend, we need to trust the Lord, no matter what circumstances look like. We also have to realize God wants what is best for us and sometimes we can compromise for what seems good to us instead of waiting for God’s best. One of the greatest definitions of trust I’ve ever heard is this, “To give someone the complete authority to destroy you, But at the same time being confident that he will never do it.” Trust must be emphatic in God and trust means, “giving something now with an expectation that it will be repaid, possibly in some unspecified way, at some unspecified time in the future.” There is no better way to show evidence of trusting in Him, than the words proceeding out of our mouth and our actions. The mouth must be controlled if we are to see the vision fulfilled, just as no-one will go to heaven against their will, neither will God’s vision manifest without our cooperation with Him. I’d like to share one of my favorite scriptures with you right now about trusting in God, “pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit” Rom 15:13 (NLT).
Let me talk to you really quick about the Grounds for trusting God. Why do we trust Him? Because of his power, because of His strength, because of the salvation He offers, because of his providence, because He is the very definition of trustworthy. But how do we express our trust towards Him? We praise Him, we worship Him, we persevere in faith, we hold on to God’s promises. And what are the many benefits of doing so? What are the benefits of trusting Him? We have Peace, Security, Protection from danger, Prosperity, Strength and long life. You know one time I asked the Lord myself; how do I know I’m trusting you Lord, what is the evidence of trusting you, what is the fruit of it? He didn’t answer me immediately, but as I settled down and got quiet, He whispered these words to me, “turn to Hebrews 4:3″, and here it is friend, the answer of whether you trust God or not, “For we which have believed do enter into rest.” Friend, if you’re trusting God right now, you should feel rest. Peace and rest should be your default setting and if you’ve lost peace you need to get back on track, seek God and find out why you’ve lost it. I’m not talking about being bummed out because the Bronco’s lost the match, I’m talking about a deep-seated unsettled feeling in your heart that needs to be resolved. You need to know where you’re at in the Kingdom of God because the Bible talks of the good, acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2).
We should always want God’s perfect will for our lives in every area, as He knows what’s best for us! The right kind of prayer should allow Him to do His perfect will in our lives and seek His guidance whenever a decision is to be made. Sometimes we proceed presumptively and settle for His acceptable will, but we should not be hasty and always seek Him for His best. The key is not being frustrated as God’s perfect will involves what’s best for all involved from His perspective, not just from yours. I remember what Brother Hagin said, many years ago and it’s always stuck with me, he pretty much said this, and I might be paraphrasing a bit but effectively he said, “I’d rather me one step behind God than two steps in front.” Friend there is so much wisdom in that statement. Walking with God is like doing the tango (not that I’m any good at the tango), but my point is that we make a step, God takes a step, we make a step, God makes a step and there are times when it feels like you’ve made 5 or 6 steps and God hasn’t made one yet, h ha but at the right time, you will see God’s hand move, but you must be patient for it.
Seven Steps to Petitioning God
- Trust in the Father’s goodness knowing He will provide for you (Romans 12:3, Philippians 4:19, James 1:17).
- Meditate on the scriptures that pertain specifically to what you’re believing for and have scriptures to back it up (Romans 10:17, Jeremiah 29:11, Joshua 1:8).
- Build up your faith in your area of need (Hebrews 11:6, Jude 1:20).
- Check your heart for sin issues or condemnation (1st John 1:9), and make sure you are confident when you pray (1st John 5:14-16).
- Come boldly to the throne of Grace (Hebrews 4:16).
- Expect to receive your answer when you pray (Mark 11:24) not in the sweet by and by.
- Continually thank the Father for what He has already granted you until you see the manifestation (Hebrews 11:1, Philippians 4:6).
Let’s say you have a need for a motor vehicle, and you want a vehicle to get you to work etc. God cares about this; he cares about your needs. Some folks will say, you can’t ask God for a car when other people have bigger needs than that, God’s got more important things to be doing. Friend, he cares intimately about us but be specific when you pray, believe for the car you want even, including the color. If someone asked you what kind of car you’re believing for, don’t just shrug your shoulders and say, nothing in particular because that’s what you’ll get, nothing in particular. So let me give you an example of how I would pray for a car, “Lord, you know I have a need for a motor vehicle, and you know my heart better than anyone. This is the kind of vehicle I would like (description) but I want your perfect choice for me. Your word says that you will meet my needs in Philippians 4:19, so right now I ask for and believe I receive your perfect will for my vehicle, in Jesus’ name and I will continue to thank you until the day it manifests, amen.”
When you pray this way, you can be confident that God’s perfect choice for you will be manifest in His timing and His way. The how and the when is up to Him, not you. He knows deep down what you really want. You might be praying for one specific thing, but God has something better lined up and when you ask for His perfect will, you keep the door open for Him to move in a way that surpasses your expectations. It’s time to be real; we are not practicing some wishy-washy faith. We live in the real world, with real problems and real issues which is why it’s paramount that we know how to pray for God’s best, being confident that we will receive and having the patience to see it manifest. Friend, if this particular teaching has touched impacted you, I would love to hear from you. Please go to our website and write me an email.”
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