“And whatever things you ask for in prayer, believing, you will receive.”* Sounds great right? I can finally get that Lamborghini I’ve always wanted. Maybe I’ll even order a burger while I’m at it.

Looking at this verse out of context can do us more harm than good. It does look like I can get whatever I want as long as I believe while I ask for it, but that’s not what this verse is saying. If we really want to understand the meaning of this verse, we need to look at it through the lens of the surrounding verses.

The events surrounding this verse can be found In Matthew 21:18-21. “Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away. And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither away so soon?” So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

There are three “ifs” in this passage that we need to consider before we try to start calling down money, and tossing mountains in the river.

First: “If you have faith.” We need to have faith to cast the mountain into the sea. One of the things that we will begin to understand as we grow in faith is that God knows what is best. Another one of the things that we will have as we grow in faith are The Fruits of The Spirit, which are love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. If we have faith in God, and are filled with His Spirit, do you think we will be throwing mountains in the sea just for fun? No, we will have the self control to avoid doing it.

Second: “Do not doubt.” We need to be completely trusting that God knows what is best for us, and will do so. If you doubt that He is able to cause the mountain to move into the sea, you are unable to tell it to do so. Part of trusting God, however, is also trusting in His plans.

Third: “Believing.” We have to believe that God will give us what we ask for. And the more we believe in Him, the more we trust in His plans for our lives.

God is fully capable of doing all these awesome things in our lives, and He wants what is best for us. When we ask Him for something it is important to remember how much He loves us, and how good His plans are. If you don’t get exactly what you asked for, just remember that God knows what is best, and He is working out His perfect plan in our lives. Also, remember that the more you put your trust in God, the more your desires will be in sync with His. When we really put our trust in God, we will be asking Him for what He wants, not our selfish desires.

Matthew 21:22