Helping Women Find their Identity in Christ

faith and prayer pleases God

“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

Faith and prayer is essential for pleasing God, and pleasing God is a Christian’s responsibility. Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, said,

“For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true. Carefully determine what pleases the Lord.”

Ephesians 5:8-10 NLT

The most important aspect of faith is a belief in God’s existence. As children of light in a dark world, we illuminate the existence of the one true God. We prove to the world that there is an active living God who rewards us for our faith. But to effectively shine, we must carefully determine what pleases the Lord.

Prayer is one of the main ingredients to developing faith and pleasing God. A few years ago, the daughter of a friend of mine got seriously ill. I don’t recall her exact ailment, but it caused her a lot of pain, and she was in and out of the hospital. Her mother implored my husband and me to pray for her because, at one time, she thought her daughter would not make it.

Then one day, I saw a Facebook post from the daughter lashing out at the people who tried to encourage her. Apparently, she was upset when people told her to pray and have faith. Her words went something like this: “How can you tell me to pray and trust God when I am in pain? How is that supposed to help me?”

My first thought when I read her post was: “Clearly you don’t believe in God.” But it’s not that she didn’t believe in God. She didn’t have a relationship with Him and therefore lacked the faith that He could comfort her in her affliction. Nevertheless, people continued to pray for her, myself included.

Her behaviour demonstrates someone who lacked faith because she never earnestly sought God who could reward her with comfort and healing. Thankfully, there were people in her life who knew God, had faith and prayed for her. My friend’s daughter got better, to the point where she posts photos of herself, all dressed up and getting ready to party.

Proverbs 15:8 states, “The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases Him.”

Due to the faith and prayers of friends and family members, God healed her, and she can now enjoy life.

Faith and prayer go hand in hand. Together they please God. We must believe that God can answer our prayers. James 1:6 NLT says,

“But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.”

Let us not waver like my friends’ daughter but pray with faith and believe that God will reward us when we earnestly search for Him. 

Reflect and Respond

What is one thing you can do today to please God? Read Hebrews 13:20-21 for encouragement.

Prayer

Lord, make Your presence known to me. Help me to draw close to You, so I can know what pleases you. When I pray, help me to believe you will answer. In Jesus’ name, Amen.


Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko

author

Lisa Marcelina lives in Trinidad and Tobago. She loves hiking, running and playing board games with her two children.

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