The bible tells us ‘you do not have because you do not ask,’ James 4:2. But what about hen we have asked and still don’t see an answer? That has been my experience recently as I have battled with excruciating back pain over a number of weeks and it is still here. I’ve asked, and plenty of others have also asked on my behalf, so why isn’t God answering?
I’m sure Paul must’ve asked the same question when he asked the Lord repeatedly for healing of whatever problem he had, 2 Corinthians 12:7-9. God chose not to answer by healing him. Would we say it was because Paul did not have enough faith? I doubt it.
Similarly I do not believe it is because I do not have enough faith that I have not been healed. Some Christians have said to me ‘I have been praying.’ I don’t doubt it and so have I.
I’ve seen people devastated when some Christians have told them, ‘It’s because you don’t have enough faith.’ To my way of thinking, this is not helpful. It puts the onus back on the person and what they need to do or to have done instead of leaving it to God. Because the reality is that not all our prayers are answered the way we would like. Not all the people we pray for are healed. This doesn’t mean a lack of faith on their part or ours. It simply means that God’s plan is not our plan.
Recently I watch ‘A Man Called Peter’ and Catherine Marshall spent a lot of time trying to think what else she could do to get God to hear her prayer and heal her of TB. It wasn’t until she surrendered completely to God that the answer came.
Sometimes God has a lesson to teach us through the experience. Here is some of what I have learned during this time http://internationalchristianfictionwriters.blogspot.com/2011/05/god-encourager.html
Other days have been very dark and I have struggled with the lack of healing, but more about this subject another time.
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