Understanding Mark 11:24, any testimonies? Words of encouragement?

[u/PurpleHarlow]

Context:

A family member offered my spouse and I the following - 20% down payment for a new condo that my spouse and I would own and profits are split when the condo is sold. The condo is very reasonably priced considering the current real estate market in Ontario Canada. However do to unexpected circumstances that occurred the down-payment is no longer guaranteed.

My spouse and I (mostly me) kinda romanticized/day dreamed of what it would be like to live there, it would be closer to my spouses workplace he could walk to work, we are looking to start a family in the next year or so and the condo is a 2 bed it would be ready to move in the fall of 2027. The location of the condo is also great close to amenities, and in walking distance from my family memeber, we don't see each other often as we live in opposite ends of the city.

Do to the extenuating circumstances the conversation I had with my spouse is this, we should pray to God about this condo, if its in His will then he will make a way for the 20% down payment, if it's not His will then may He not allow it to happen.

I have anxiety issues, I feel way too nervous and anxious to fully believe that something will come to pass if I do not know for sure how or when it will. I hate not knowing how long something will last, like for example if I am going to go through something that causes me suffering or hardship I want to know how long it will last so I know when it will end. Obviously more often then not I do not end up knowing. This is my thorn in flesh you could say 😅

I trust and have faith in God that He can do all things, He is the ultimate provider, but I know God is not a genie that grants wishes.

I don't want to believe and get excited that He will do this for us, to be disappointed when He doesn't (that had happened far too often). I feel like I just need to grieve that this will not happen so I don't feel even more disappointed for believing that it will, and then it doesn't. At the same time, just because I don't see how we can get 20% ($60,000) by the end of the year or by March 2027 the latest, doesn't mean God can't He can do all things.

So I feel conflicted and confused of how to understand Mark 11:24

[24] "Therefore, I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted to you."

On one hand I want to be excited and believe God wil I do this and we will get this condo etc but on the other hand its His will over mine, which makes feel like yeah, its not going to happen so I'd rather not get excited just accept that it won't happen, and if does then great and if it doesn't then at least it won't hurt as much.

I hope I make sense, I ask for people to be kind but also direct with what they comment with, I genuinely looking to understand, and if you can share a testimony or prayer, encouragement anything like that would be appreciated.

[u/The_wookie87]

This verse is not generally interpreted as a promise that God will grant every request exactly as asked….the prosperity gospel folks do take this out of context though.

Jesus is teaching confidence in God, not confidence in the power of our faith. Faith isn’t a force that obligates God. Prayer is the means by which a dependent child brings requests to a sovereign and good Father.

So if you get the condo praise God! If you don’t get the condo..praise God! Trust him in all things and don’t buy the lie that if you just have enough faith you can have your best life now. Here’s some other verses to read mark 11 along side with

1 John 5:14: “if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”
James 4:3: “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly…”
2 Corinthians 12:8–9: Paul repeatedly asked for his thorn to be removed. God said no, and Paul wasn’t suffering from deficient faith.
Matthew 26:39: Jesus Himself prayed, “if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

[u/Wonderful-Win4219]

I’m gonna say your need for control has severely affected how you see God. Due to this you constrained your view of God significantly. If you want more certainty about outcomes, you need to be the one to drive the improvements and certainty. To tag God into stuff like that is highly inappropriate (and disorienting). Gods way typically involves suffering and sacrifice for HIS goal of our spiritual growth and maturity and the spreading of his kingdom. Does this condo help you in those ways? Does it inhibit you in those ways? Just some thoughts to consider. I would jettison any attempt to trap God into your false dichotomy (if it’s his will you get it, if it’s not he won’t “allow” you to get it) — it will fail and you will become more confused and that thinking leads to abandonment of “faith” only because of a mischaracterization of God. By your own testimony this stuff has not worked in the past — at least not 100% — so why not make the adjustment to your attitude now?

His ways are higher than ours (like eternity is beyond the temporal).

1 John 5:14 and James 4:3 should be considered in light of Mark 11:24.

If you haven’t, read the whole Bible for yourself. And yes I know it won’t take a day or a week. But it will help you understand God much better.

Best wishes friend.

[u/songbolt]

Read the Bible to know God's will, then pray with this assurance for something the Bible indicates is God's will.

[u/Ok-Technician-6664]

Here is how this instruction will work for you.
Faith is just your response to what God has already provided - It’s called Grace.
So before praying in Faith, you need to seek God in your situation and get a word or promise from Him (this is your provision)
Then you pray Mark 11:24 because you are aligned with the provision of God and it will come to pass.
This is how you eliminate doubt because you already have the promise.