What to Do When Your Prayers Don't Seem to Work
Heidi Baker prayed for 100 blind people before she saw the first one healed. Most of us quit at three. What's the difference?
It's not that Heidi has more faith than you do. It's not that she's more spiritual or more anointed or has some special connection to God that you don't have access to.
The difference is this: Her faith wasn't in her ability to produce results. Her faith was in Jesus.
And that changes everything.
When Nothing Happens
Let me be honest with you. We've all been there. You step out in faith. You pray for someone to be healed. You really believe. You're doing everything "right."
And nothing happens.
So what do you do? Most of us do one of two things:
We get offended at God and back away, saying, "Well, it must not be for today because I tried and it didn't work for me."
We start to dishonor the Bible and rewrite it to say healings aren't for today, that it's not part of our salvation package, that "these signs" don't really follow "those who believe" anymore.
In other words, we honor our experience over the Word of God.
And that's exactly the trap Satan wants us to fall into.
The Heidi Baker Story
Let me tell you about Heidi Baker. She's a missionary to Mozambique, one of the poorest nations on earth at the time, where blindness was rampant because of malnutrition.
The Lord told her: "You're going to see blind eyes open."
So she went back to Mozambique and started praying for every blind person she could find. And she said it was probably 100—100 people—that she prayed for before she saw the first blind eye open.
When she did, she was shocked that it worked.
But here's the key: She had never given up. She knew what she heard. Her faith was no longer in her ability to pray and see the result. Her faith was in Jesus.
After that first one opened, many others started getting healed every time she prayed. And now she'll jokingly say, "You know, now I'm surprised if they don't open."
They've had so many resurrections from the dead in her ministry that Iris Ministries stopped counting the resurrections unless they were dead at least four days.
It's almost funny, except most of us would be like, "That can't be true because we don't see anything like that."
What Are You Putting Faith In?
Here's my question: Are you putting more faith in your experience or in the testimony of Jesus?
The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Revelation 19:10). If He does it for Heidi, He can do it for us. He's no respecter of persons.
The question isn't whether you have enough faith to produce a miracle. The question is whether you're willing to honor Jesus as Healer and step out, even when you don't see immediate results.
The Pressure Is Off
Here's what's beautiful: When we yield to His presence, when we yield to His voice, that's when we're partnering with Him.
We're not stepping up and doing something religious and just saying, "I command you to be healed in Jesus' name!" If the Lord's telling you to say that, that's great. But if not, you can't just do these religious incantations and expect Holy Spirit to flow through some kind of magical words.
It's not like that at all.
The beautiful thing about Heidi Baker's story, and about how God's Kingdom operates—is that it takes the pressure off.
We just show up in faith, believing God, and God does the impossible.
We don't have to convert the hearts. We don't have to produce the miracle. But we have to partner with Him.
Standing in the Gap
You know how many times God said, "I stand in the gap and I'm looking for somebody to stand in the gap and I find none. And I can't bring the mercy that I want to bring. I can't do the miracles that I want to bring"—because He couldn't find somebody to stand in the gap with Him.
We play an important role.
If you sit back and say, "Well, if it's the Lord's will to heal, He's going to heal," you're worshiping the wrong God. You're not worshiping the God of the Bible, because that's not what it says and that's not what Jesus demonstrated.
Even Jesus Himself said He could do nothing except for what He heard the Father say or what He saw the Father do (John 5:19). He was dependent on that partnership when He was walking on the earth as a man.
How much more do we have to be as well?
Your Job: Partner With Him
In healing—whether it's spirit, soul, body, money, relationships, you name it—there's no pressure for us to produce the results.
Our role is just to show up and to honor, to show up and to believe.
We're not responsible if nothing happens. We didn't fail. And we're not responsible if it did happen because we're not the Healer. But we are the conduit. We are the bridge.
And we want to make sure we never take an opportunity for offense, for disappointment, for unbelief.
All we have to do is show up, and He does the impossible math. He heals the brokenhearted. He sets the captive free.
What If I Look Foolish?
I know what you're thinking: "But what if I step out and I look foolish?"
Let me ask you this: Are you going to care more and honor more what people think, or are you going to honor more what Jesus thinks? What Holy Spirit thinks? What the Father thinks?
He longs to heal His people—whether they're saved or unsaved, whether they're in the church or in the world. That Canaanite woman wasn't in the church, but Jesus reached out and created opportunities to not only bring her in, but to bring in her whole region.
So all we have to do is step out, and He'll step in and do the big stuff.
Don't Rewrite the Bible
When you feel like you've hit the wall, when you feel like God's not showing up for you, are you going to get offended? Are you going to dishonor the Bible and rewrite it to say healings aren't for today?
Are you going to rewrite the Bible as if it doesn't say, "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover" (Mark 16:17-18, NKJV)?
If you're a believer, these signs should follow. But it's not your job—remember, no pressure—it's not your job to make it happen. It's your job to step up in honor, to step up and believe, and to step out.
God can't drive a parked car. You have to get in and start moving.
Listen in the Moment
When you're actually praying, don't just go through rote prayers. Trust that the Lord is going to communicate to you what to say and what to do, just like Jesus didn't do anything or say anything unless He heard the Father.
It's not like you're going to hear this external audible voice. Trust what you're getting in the moment. Posture your heart toward the Lord that you're going to honor what He's saying or what He's doing. Whatever feeling you have, the verse that pops up, or whatever—go with it and watch Him show up and show off.
Because He does the hard stuff.
The Key Is Already in Your Pocket
Here's what I want you to understand: If you are a believer, if you're saved, healing is part of your salvation package. Not only is healing available for you, but the ability to heal others—that key is in your pocket.
"Greater works than these will you do" (John 14:12). It's part of your anointing, and it's actually part of your calling. It's part of the Great Commission.
Matthew 28 talks about making disciples. But the end of Mark's version of the Great Commission talks about doing the big power stuff: "Yes, these signs will follow those who believe."
Honor is the key. It's the key that unlocks the door. We believe. Jesus is the One that does the big stuff. We honor Him. We believe. He steps in and does the big stuff.
We don't have to do the big stuff. There's no pressure on us.
Fear of Man vs. Honor of God
Our only pressure is the fear of man. What if I step out and I look foolish? Am I going to care more and honor more what people think, or am I going to honor more what Jesus thinks?
He longs to heal His people. And remember, healing is for the nations. It's not just for those already in the church. It's what draws people of the nations to our God.
So step out. Be willing to look foolish if necessary. Trust that your job isn't to feed the 5,000—your job is to show up with the loaves and fishes.
And then watch Him do the impossible math.
The key is already in your pocket. Now go use it.
Blessings,
Susan 😊