Working on the Inside

Richard Roberts

Have you ever prayed for something, and nothing seemed to happen? That’s the situation we see in Mark 11:14 when Jesus cursed a fig tree. The Bible says, His disciples heard it, but they sure didn’t see anything happen at first.

Picture this scene: Jesus was on His way to Jericho to preach. He was hungry. He saw a fig tree and walked over to it to see if He could pick a couple of figs for a snack. But He discovered there were none, so He said to the tree, “You’ll never bear fruit again!” Now the disciples were watching because usually when Jesus spoke, something happened. Only, in this instance, it looked as if nothing happened. And Jesus and the disciples went on into town.

But the next morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots (v. 20). Peter cried, “Jesus look! The fig tree You cursed yesterday has withered and died!” The disciples found that while nothing appeared to happen on the outside of that tree, Jesus’ faith had been working on the inside! Immediately He seized the opportunity to teach the disciples a lesson on faith. He said, “Have faith in God (v. 22). Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them (v. 24 NKJV).”

I believe this is a key to receiving answers to our prayers. Sometimes when we pray and believe, on the outside it looks as if nothing is happening. But as we keep believing, something is happening on the inside. We just can’t see it with our human eyes. So don’t give up. You may not see the answer yet, but as you continue to believe, your faith is working on the inside!

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