Mark 11:12-14, 20-24 (NRSV)
Faith that moves mountains
On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see whether perhaps he would find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard it. ...
In the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. Then Peter remembered and said to him, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered." Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and if you do not doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you. So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see whether perhaps he would find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard it. ...
In the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. Then Peter remembered and said to him, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered." Jesus answered them, "Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and if you do not doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you. So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
I've read this passage I don't know how many times before, but this is the first time I've noticed exactly how Jesus phrases his directive about prayer: "believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
Not believe that you shall have it or you'll get it, but believe that you have received it - as in you already have it.
For someone looking for something specific in a prayer, this is perhaps frustrating, but as someone who as a parent is constantly wanting her child to believe that she is strong and capable and intelligent and most importantly, loved, this is everything. It's kind of like the cliche I used to tell the sales people I trained in my days as an Insurance Sale Rep trainer: "You get what you set."
Where we are emotionally and spiritually has a lot to do with how we approach prayer. If your starting point is: "I believe I am a loved child of God," that comes from that faith that moves mountains.
But the truth is for me that's not always where I am when I pray. Sometimes what I'm experiencing in the moment isn't God's love but my own desperation or sometimes my own entitlement. In those times, I really don't believe I already have it, and I probably also don't believe I'm going to have whatever it is I seek because I either see myself as unworthy of it, or in that moment of entitlement, worthy of more than I need.
Faithful Lord: You want us to believe what you know to be true - we are your beloved children. Help that be our starting place in all of our prayer life and in all of our interactions with each other. We believe that we have received the most precious gift of all from you. Remind us always that that gift is already ours. Amen
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