Have you ever wondered why your prayers aren’t answered? There are many possible reasons, including those that have nothing to do with how we pray. But the account of the woman whose daughter was demon-possessed in Matthew 15 redefines what it means to pray powerfully.
Turned Away
The woman who asked for Jesus’ healing hand on her daughter was a Canaanite, not a Jew. Jesus doesn’t even answer her first plea for help. When he does respond, he likens her to a dog. Definitely not the popular version of Jesus! Why would Jesus treat a desperate woman this way? In his sermon, Persevering in Prayer, Pastor Dechard Stevens uses this story to explain:
When someone knocked on the door of a couple’s home, the husband went to answer it. The man at the door asked if he could please have some food. “Honey,” the husband called. “There’s a man at the door and he wants some food.”
“Tell him no,” his wife called.
“Sorry,” said the husband and started to close the door.
“Please,” said the man at the door. “I just want a sandwich.”
“Dear,” called the husband to his wife, “he says he just wants a sandwich.”
“Tell him we’re as poor as he is. No sandwich!” answered his wife.
Again the husband apologized and tried to close the door. “Please, just a slice of bread?” asked the man at the door.
The husband called to his wife once again, “He says he just wants a slice of bread.”
“He’s a real beggar,” answered the wife. “Let him in and give him a whole meal.”
She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly. Matthew 15:27-28
Want to learn to pray more powerfully? Join Circles of Faith for 40 Days of Prayer using Mark Batterson’s Draw the Circle beginning Wednesday, February 13th.
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I was born with soft, paper-thin, peeling nails and never understood why I hadn’t been given the gene for my mother’s gorgeous fingernails.
I never bothered to paint them, because in no time, my nails would tear off and look hideous anyway.
The Search for a Solution
As a teen, I’d heard that Knox gelatin could change my nails. I can’t honestly say I consumed lots of this stuff, but what I did eat didn’t seem to make a difference.
I tried getting expensive salon nails, because I figured I was destined to require them. I was at a dance when mine started flying off, leaving even thinner nails behind.
My next attempt at rescuing my nails was to use a nail strengthener. Over the past 30 years, I’ve used many of them. They always worked temporarily. If I was religious about using them, my nails grew a bit before they were torn off.
The most researched solution I tried was biotin. This vitamin is supposed to make a difference in your nails, but alas for me, it didn’t. My nails continued to be weak, despite taking biotin faithfully.
I was hopeful that I had found the answer, however. Lack of iron is supposed to contribute to poor nails. As I’d been anemic in the past, I figured iron supplements would do the trick. Nope! Layers of my nails continued to peel.
I was ready to give up when I read an article online that gave me the surprising solution to my no-nails dilemma.
How to Grow Your Nails
1. Keep your nails from getting wet. If you wash dishes or clean with wet solutions frequently, wear gloves. I knew that wasn’t my problem. Instead, as long as I could remember, I had put my nails in my mouth. A lot. I didn’t bite them off, but I put them in my mouth as a nervous habit. When I was driving or trying to solve a problem, my nails went in my mouth. When I was most anxious, I chewed them like leather.
2. File away the rough edges immediately. I wasn’t doing this consistently. I put it off, ignoring the fact that rough edges made it inevitable that my nails would catch on something and tear off.
I had to be constantly vigilant to put this advice into action. I had no idea how frequently I put my nails in my mouth! And what’s more, I couldn’t believe that I thought I could chew on my nails and have them be strong. But as I refrained from doing so and filed as soon as I saw any sharp corners or ragged edges on my nails, they started to grow.
My nails had grown before, but this time was different. While they weren’t rock hard nails, they were strong. I could actually tap them on the counter and make noise! And that was without nail strengthener. The photo taken above was taken before I had grown them to their maximum length. Surprisingly enough, I’ve found I don’t like them as long as they can be! I’ve cut myself with them playing tennis. For the first time, I actually have to trim my nails with a clipper. They’re so strong that they don’t tear off. They actually break!
What Does This Have to Do With Changing Your Life?
No, having longer, stronger nails hasn’t really changed my life. What has is what I’ve learned in growing them out. As with so many other areas of my life where I’ve desired change, I spent lots of time looking for the unique solution to growing my nails. I was sure there was some magic potion that would accomplish what I wanted. There wasn’t.
Instead, I learned that most of the time, changing your life means not destroying it yourself. It isn’t that we need a new diet or exercise plan. We need to stop eating when we aren’t hungry. It isn’t that we need a better coupon organizing system; we need to stop buying things we don’t need. I didn’t need to find the right nail strengthener. I needed to stop weakening my nails by putting them in my mouth and chewing them. I was like the foolish woman who tore her house down with her own hands (Prov. 14:1). It wasn’t genetics that had destroyed my nails; it was me.
The solution is often so simple, we don’t see it.
The second piece of advice is like it. Filing away the ragged edges immediately is like addressing life’s problems right away. When we eat those cookies when we’ve already had a filling meal, we need to ask ourselves why and take steps to prevent it in the future. When we come home with a purchase we don’t need, we need to return it right away. It’s like my mama always used to say: “Nip it in the bud!”
If we ignore this wisdom, we will continue living with weak nails and a weak life. We’ll waste our time and money on solutions that aren’t solutions at all.
What about you? What have you tried to grow your nails and change your life? What will you try now?
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
I recently discovered that I haven’t learned that. Oh, I don’t pine away for material possessions, but that’s no credit to my character. I have everything I need and so much of what I want. Yet, I am not content. Here’s how I know:
I feel like I never have enough time to accomplish all I want and need to do.
I feel dissatisfied with the amount of success I have in many areas.
I feel frustrated with people who don’t behave the way I would like them to.
I feel disappointed by institutions, my country, and even my church.
In short, I haven’t learned to be content like Paul. Can you relate? Do you find yourself wanting more and being dissatisfied?
Having had times in my life in which I experienced true contentment, I can say unequivocally that I wouldn’t trade it for momentary joy. While I am sure we will know joy in heaven, contentment has got to reign supreme. Over the next several weeks, I’d like to explore what God would like to teach us about His contentment while we still live on earth. I will know that I am learning when:
I am not stressed out and in a perpetual hurry
I see everything I accomplish as progress toward His purposes
I recognize that people are wretched sinners like me who are in the Lord’s hands; if we weren’t, we wouldn’t need a Savior
I understand that God is in control of every institution, country, and church and I’m not
The sweet baby pictured above would not be content if he had fear. Fear is opposed to contentment. We’ll delve into that in the coming weeks, but for now, here is your assignment:
Look for instances of discontentment in your life. One I’ve noticed is a habit of looking at my smart phone constantly.
When you notice lack of contentment, ask yourself what if anything you’re afraid of? I sometimes look at my phone because I’m afraid of being left out of a conversation. Looking at my phone makes me appear to be a busy, important person.
Thinking of some of my difficulties as lack of contentment is helpful to me. For example, concern about how much blogging I do isn’t leading me to work harder as it would have, but now to be content with the time I have.
How about you? Do you struggle with discontentment?
I’m going to get real with you and admit that I have been really disappointed in people lately. Really. So I went to the Lord with the problem, assuming He would sympathize. Instead, He said, “I know. Imagine how I feel.”
I have tried convincing myself that the people I’m disappointed in haven’t done anything wrong. That isn’t working. They clearly have done wrong, even by God’s definition. I have tried telling myself that everyone sins. That doesn’t help either. I’m still really disappointed that especially professing Christians are so comfortable with sin. I’m not really sure what I expected God to do to make me feel better–give people a supernatural spanking? Turns out, God gave me one instead. Here it is (ouch!).
Luke 18:
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Discipline, while painful at the time, always teaches us something. Here is what I’ve learned. I will be disappointed in people if I compare them to my inflated opinion of myself and yes, even if I compare them to God’s perfect law. To gain victory over disappointment in others, I must keep my eyes focused on the Lord and how *I* look in comparison. Turns out I look like a really bad “before” picture.
There is no question that I am someone else’s disappointment. There is also no question that sometimes we are called to lovingly and honestly talk to others who have hurt us or who are going astray. But remaining stuck in disappointment with others means we need our vision corrected. Thank you, Lord, for helping me see myself more clearly and as a result, loving you more dearly.
George Mueller is one of my faith heroes. I have read several books about him and by him and continue to be inspired.
He wrote a small pamphlet called “Five Reasons Why Prayer Must be Answered.” George is known for receiving consistent and dramatic answers to prayer and as a result is a highly credible author on the subject. We can be confident pray-ers like George:
1) If we pray according to the will of God, we can be confident of answered prayer. “14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” (1 John 5:14)
2) If we ask in the name of Jesus and for His sake, we can be confident for what we ask. “14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” (John 14:14)
3) If we believe He is able and willing to answer us, we can be assured that our prayers will be heard. “24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark 11:24)
4) If we avoid willful sin, we can be certain that the Lord will listen to our appeals. “18 If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;” (Psalm 66:18)
5) If we have a history of answered prayer, we can be sure that our God is the same God today. “7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?”
Lest you think that George was a man who believed that wealth, good health, and salvation for all were his for the asking, you should know that:
George gave up his earthly wealth to serve the Lord. The Lord provided for him in every way, but he had few earthly possessions.
George experienced chronic abdominal problems, though he lived a long life. George saw God using his periodic poor health for his good and the good of others.
George wrote that God “did not see fit” to confirm to George that his father was a believer before he died. Yet George continued to believe that God’s will was to bring many to faith through George’s work and testimony.
George was a sinner. Although George did not choose to call sin something else and did not knowingly and stubbornly engage in sin, he still led an imperfect, fleshly life. Even so, the Lord chose to bless him with an abundance of answered prayer. In other words, George’s standard for living is not too difficult for us.
George spent a great deal of time ascertaining the will of God. Before beginning a bold project and then asking the Lord for His blessing, he often spent months making sure he wasn’t pursuing something for his own purposes.
George often waited a long time before seeing the answers to his prayers and even experiencing significant trials as he did so.
Finally, if we want to pray like George, we ought to record our prayers. George was diligent to note the date he began praying and the date of the fulfillment of his request. Honestly, this is a practice I once had, but have let go. I hope you will join me this week in praying like George. If you haven’t read his biography or his book, The Life of Trust, I know you will be blessed to do so.
It seems Christmas has become more and more controversial. It’s as if Christians have to apologize for their beliefs. Have you noticed that? Christ did come to bring peace on earth, but not quite yet. For now, the controversy will remain and will heat up. These events are clearly foretold in the Bible.
In So You’re Not Wonder Woman?, I share about my experience with an Answers in Genesis video that changed the way I saw the Bible. I attended public schools throughout my education with the exception of three years at a private Christian college. During the course of my school years (even in the Christian college), the idea that evolution (and not God’s Word) was fact was reinforced or at least never refuted.
As someone who believed that God created us, I had a dilemma. Was God really the creator? Or did we change from single-celled organisms over the course of millions of years? I decided that somehow BOTH were true and I just couldn’t explain it. That was when I discovered Answers in Genesis and the wonderful truth that I could actually believe God’s account of our beginnings in Genesis. I learned that it is logically impossible to believe in both God and evolution. To believe in evolution AND God is to believe that death happened before Adam and Eve sinned. To believe in evolution is to believe that God’s creation from the very beginning wasn’t good. Instead, it was kill or be killed. Of course, one could argue that they believe in God, but not a literal Genesis; that they believe in a creator God who used evolution to create. At what point in the Bible then does God start telling the truth? Why believe any of it? I could discuss this at length, but suffice to say that when I learned God’s Word could be trusted, I was very relieved. (At this point, please allow me to point out that I am discussing evolution between species, not within. Species adapt and change over time. You won’t get any argument from any thinking person on that).
Despite being a Ph.D., however, there were many, many questions I didn’t have answers to. I didn’t have the questions; others did. What about the fossil record that “proves” evolution, for example? Since meeting Dr. Carl Werner, however, I am thrilled that I now have more answers! Carl is a prodigy who graduated from medical school at the age of 23. Wow! He is an ER physician who has devoted the last 11 years of his life with his photographer/videographer wife traversing the planet investigating evolution. Like me, Carl believed that evolution was fact. He set about to find the evidence to prove it. He has interviewed leading scientists, has studied thousands of museum fossils and has visited dinosaur dig sites. The amount of data he has accumulated is mind boggling.
Over the course of his long search for proof of evolution, Carl discovered there isn’t any. What a bold statement that is, I know! But so profound was the lack of evidence that Carl came to believe that God’s Word was truth. This book is a summary of some of his findings. A second volume in the series is coming out this spring. Carl is praying that a documentary series he has planned using his many hours of video & photographic evidence will be aired. My family and I had the pleasure of spending an evening with Carl and were honestly blown away. I really didn’t think he could tell me anything I didn’t already know. I was so wrong! My 12yo seemed most affected by what he heard. He had often asked questions about evolution with what appeared to be some skepticism about a creationist view. After our meeting with Carl, I think I saw his faith grow before my eyes.
I believe everyone ought to read this book. It is designed for a 6th grade reading level and above. It is chock full of beautiful photographs and doesn’t take long to read. You’ll discover that fossils of animals that were supposed to have evolved much later than dinosaurs (like mammals!) have actually been found with dinosaur fossils over and over again. If you haven’t heard that, it’s because it doesn’t support the theory of evolution so isn’t discussed. The other main reason you don’t hear about these finds is because animals that are 99% if not 100% identical to modern species are renamed as though they are a new prehistoric species, sometimes being put into a completely different genus (classification group). On what basis you ask? Simply at the whim of the one who discovers the fossil. He or she chooses the name and decides where it fits in the classification system. Colleagues in the field see that Dr. Joe named a fossil that looks JUST like our modern possum a neverseenbeforewhatchamacallit and the colleagues don’t point out that it’s a POSSUM because it doesn’t fit the theory and because they don’t want Dr. Joe interfering with their right to attention and money for renaming a dog fossil a nothersupernewcreaturite.
Until I spoke with Carl, I’ve always felt too stupid to understand how animal and plant species are classified. I understood mammals, reptiles, fish, etc., but that’s about it! Now I know that it’s not stupid to think that the Emperor is wearing no clothes! A possum fossil found with dinosaurs is in fact a possum! Carl’s research and interviews also demonstrate that the fossils that supposedly show us the “missing links” between one kind of animal and another have also been subject to the same kind of subjective speculation. I’ve always assumed that there is a way of determining in a way that can be replicated by others what an animal must have looked like simply from its skeleton/fossil. Of course, there is in large part. But Carl interviewed the man who discovered evolution’s best evidence (a hyena-like creature evolving into a whale). The fossil was supposed to be half-whale, half land mammal, but had no tail bones. The scientist admitted that he just “decided” that it had a tail and drew one in. More recently, however, he’s changed his mind.
Of course, I am just scratching the surface of what you can learn from Carl’s books. I believe there is no one in the world more knowledgeable about evolution and its evidence than Carl Werner. If he can’t prove its validity, who can? If you have ever felt apologetic about your faith’s view on the origins of life or if you can’t imagine that evolution isn’t well established fact, please order a copy of Carl’s book today. Better yet, order one as a gift for those on both sides of the issue. You may be giving someone the gift of unapologetic faith.
I’m a Christian psychologist turned homeschooling mother of six. My life can be a little crazy, so I look for sanity-saving ideas to use and share. I hope you’ll read my About page to learn more.
