Key Reasons Why You're Not Receiving

There are key elements on why we do not receive from God. It is important that we understand what those elements are. 

Do you feel that the church – the body of believers – is stagnant, declining, or even dead?  

The author of Hebrews tells believers that it is time to grow up spiritually.

“You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s Word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.”  Hebrews 5:12-14 NLT

 I believe these three key elements play a role in why people are not receiving from God:

WORD ~ We need to know God’s Will, and God’s Word IS God’s Will. By knowing God and His ways we learn to believe the Word, trust in the Word, and live out the Word.

KNOW ~ We need to know what we’re asking for and why. We need to know that God is a good Father who wants to give His children good things.

HEART ~ Everything starts and comes down to the heart. We need to believe and have God in our heart. All our worship and praise has to come from our heart – not just in our head.

We know there are problems in life that we must deal with. Many of us get caught up in those problems. We tend to forget that the LORD is right there with us, seeing everything. He wants us to come near to Him and know Him as a Father who wants to give His children good things.

In Mark 10, there is a story of a blind beggar. This man had problems. In his anguish, Bartimaeus cries out for Jesus. The LORD saw Bartimaeus’ heart and healed him instantly. (see Mark 10:46-52)

God shows His heart and love for us in His Word. Mark 11:24 says,

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”  

I’m guessing we’ve all been there. We’ve all been on that ‘struggle bus’. We’ve prayed and prayed, going around that mountain we want so desperately to be gone. We may pray ourselves out of one financial disaster, just to be met with another. We receive healing for one illness, just in time to be knocked off our feet by another. As believers, we must realize that this is all about what the Word says, Knowing the ‘what’, and keeping your Heart clean and full with faith.

Even when we know that we are exercising our faith, we can get caught up in those same old problems as we had before. When this happens, we should go to the Word for our answers. I believe there are still many baby Christians in the church today. They still want their ‘milk’ kind of preaching. There comes a time when every Christian is faced with a decision. We must decide whether we want to stay at the surface level in our walk with God, or go deeper and find out what God really wants for us.  

1 Peter 1:15-16 says, “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’ “ 

Knowing what God is asking of us is important. Jesus was about His Father’s business, and we can and should be doing the same.

Colossians 3:23-24 says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

We see here that the Heart is important. All things come down to how we perceive in our heart, and as we perceive, we act.

Knowing how to pray is a key element. It’s important to remember that one prayer does not fit all situations. God very clearly tells us in John 16:24, “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.”

There is a way to receive, and it's through Jesus Christ. When I receive answers to my prayers, I am full of joy!

Making the decision to go deeper and to take in more than just the ‘milk’ kind of preaching, you will truly know the abundant love God has for you! 

2 Corinthians 9:8 says,”And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”

By doing exactly what God wants and tells us to do, we will abound in those good works. So many people do not truly know God, so they are not doers of His Word, and because they don’t know His way or His will, they don’t even know what to ask for when they pray.

Looking back at the story of Bartimaeus, we know that he had more than just the problem of being blind. He was a beggar, and he probably had even more problems. Bartimaeus chose to focus on what he needed the most – the clarity he would get when his sight is restored. 

Maybe today you're not physically blind, but you may feel spiritually blind. If that describes you, then all you need to do is to ask the Lord to open your spiritual eyes and give you understanding. Healing, whether physical or spiritual, is a free gift and is available to all who believe. But remember, it’s all about that final key element – the heart. You must really desire and believe in your heart that God will open your eyes and your understanding to His ways.

As Christians, we should all do a heart check. Is there a possibility of a hardened heart? Are there areas of your heart that you have shut off from God due to circumstances like pain, 

disappointment, feelings of failure?  Paul talks about fighting the good fight of faith. He urges us to take hold of our eternal life (see 1 Timothy 6:12)

Maybe you have fought that good fight of faith. If you've been praying and believing for something, asking God to reveal a certain thing to you, and still haven't received your answer, hold on to hope and keep praising the LORD in faith. 

Do you believe that in some cases there are blessings in unanswered prayers? The most common answer usually goes something like this: “God will say yes, or He will say no, or sometimes wait. 

At times, God will tell us to wait, but I don’t think we quite understand who or what the waiting is for.

The book of James tells us that we don't receive because we ask with the wrong motives.

(see James 4:3-6)

The story of King Midas is a myth about the tragedy of greed and it tells what happens when true happiness is not recognized. Midas was a man who wished that everything he touched would turn into gold. Soon the joy of all that gold came to an end when he could no longer touch food or embrace another person. King Midas may have thought that his wish would always be a blessing, but he soon found it to be a curse.

If we are born again Christians, we believe that God is a good Father and wants to give His children good things, even when it comes in a package that we do not understand. Some things we are asking for will not be right for us at the time. God may first want us to do something or go through something. As we trust in His ways and His wisdom (see Isaiah 55:8-9), God helps us to avoid unintended consequences.

As of late, I have done some self-examination of my relationship and walk with God. I’ve come to understand that sometimes God puts the brakes on things that I thought would be moving forward. Only He knows what is my best yes!

Not receiving an answer that I wanted from my prayers or getting a ‘wait’ from God has caused me to be disappointed or perplexed at times, but I know when I get to Heaven I will be thanking my Father for those prayers that did not come to pass. 

As humans, we want our comfort. We sometimes want the easy way through things instead of asking God for the strength to go through and believing He will do it. The book of James tells us that when we ask the LORD for something, we cannot doubt. We cannot be double minded, or we become unstable in all our ways. (see James 1:5-8)

I don’t believe God is calling us to work harder. If we abide in Him and His Word, I believe we will work smarter. We will use our energy to be good stewards in receiving what He gives and allows us to have. If your heart is divided –  you're longing for one thing but really you're wanting something else – then ask God to help you work through that, and He will. The Word is the only thing that's going to give you faith to actually receive what you need most – which will be your   best yes!

Let us start thinking about what we really need from God that will move us forward into a deeper, more meaningful relationship with our LORD. Let us be done with the spiritual blindfolds, continuously trying to fight some invisible enemy that we can’t seem to defeat. Let us be done with going around that same old mountain over and over again, hoping that one day things may change. God has not called us for any of that!

As I reflect on my own personal life, I’m realizing and God has revealed to me that my thinking that He can’t fix something (that I think He should fix), or He is unwilling to do so, is a me thing. It’s me with a wrong perception. If I allow God, this can become a breakthrough for me and for you. It then can become a receiving thing. 

Matthew 7:7   “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” 

John 15:7   “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”

What a perfect way to show the heart of the Father. God’s Love is perfect. We only need to receive!

WORD ~ KNOW ~ HEART

Author: Priscilla Campbell 

Editor: Christine Platt