10 Things That Happen When Our Mindset Does Not Match Our Prayers

Did you know that our mindset is just as powerful and important as our prayer life?

We can pray all day, but what good is it doing if we do not believe? If you follow me, then you know that I am unapologetic concerning my Christian faith.

I believe that my life, my hope, my purpose reside in my Savior, Jesus Christ.

Yet, I am a lover of all people, no matter their culture, background, or beliefs.

I believe largely due to my passion for mindsets, mental health, and the functionality of our brains, I am often intrigued by individuals of all backgrounds. I believe my purpose here on Earth is to be a healer of the mind and not just minds that look like mine.

So often, I find myself very interested in learning more about the backgrounds and beliefs of different people and cultures. I want to know the depths of their choices and the mindsets that led them to the place they are currently in, in life. If you see me out in a place where there is a homeless population, you will more than likely witness me stopping to engage with them and ask them questions. It's because I understand that they have a life story and if you stop to listen, their story can have a greater impact on our own in truly understanding what brought them to this place in life.

The questions I tend to ask are questions that we all could benefit from stopping and asking ourselves internally.

1. What brought you to this place?

2. What beliefs and self-talk steered you here?

3. Why do you believe that you were chosen for this journey?

Life has taught me that what this world needs more than anything is someone to listen with love, more than judgment. This world needs people who are listening to understand more than they are to question.

In my research of people and their minds, I've learned that of all the backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures there is one thing that most of us have in common and that is our belief in prayer. We believe that praying over a situation can truly change things. We also share the belief of our power to not only speak but manifest what we believe to be true about our life and journey.

We all may have different ways of going about this practice, but one thing we do know is that in prayer, oour mindset is key.

There was not much that Jesus could do with a people that refused to believe. There is not much the disciples could do without true belief in what they were doing either. In the Bible, there is a story of a man whose son had a demon. This man goes to Jesus and asks Him for help because the disciples could not deliver his son. Jesus immediately casts this demon out of the boy and when the disciples asked why they couldn't, He spoke to them about their faith.

Even in other religions and beliefs, it is known that one of the key principles of manifesting anything in life is that once we speak it, we move, act and speak as though it has already taken place.

This is the same that we as Christians should believe when it comes to prayer and the manifestation of that prayer in our life.

God's word says that if we ask anything in His name, He will do it. He also says that if we have the faith of a mustard seed that we can move mountains.

Yet, what happens when we pray in faith, but walk away in worry?

10 Things That Happen When Our Mindset Does Not Match Our Prayers

1. What we Speak Conflicts with What Our Mind Believes. When we pray, we must believe. As mentioned above, we must grab hold of God's word in John 14:14 that says that, "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it." We must allow the truth in those words to plant and take root within us on good soil that will promote its growth. When there is a conflict between our minds and our words, we will end up traveling in circles around the very things we prayed. Today, ask God to teach you how to pray, begin the work, but leave the completion and the timing of that prayer to Him.

2. Doubt Interferes with Our Faith. Doubt can not only be a distraction but it also can be an interference. We must pray and ask God to help us with our unbelief because He knows exactly where we are struggling anyway. Remember above, I mentioned that when Jesus traveled to His hometown, He could do very few miracles because His people could not get past who they knew Him to be to truly open their minds to see who He IS. Today, ask God to help you to get past what you see in the physical so that you can believe in what you are speaking in the spiritual.

3. In the Spiritual Realm, There is Confusion. I've always heard that when we speak something but struggle to believe it, then we can confuse the atmosphere that God wants to utilize to bring that thing to pass. When we pray, we've got to leave it with God. There is no reason to pray and then pick that very thing back up. Today, ask God to show you how to pray and then walk away knowing and trusting that it's truly in His hands.

4. We Pray but Still Worry. We've all heard the phrase, "if you're going to worry, then why pray?" It stands true. Faith is hard, but God is a promise keeper. Philippians 4:6 tells us to "be anxious for nothing." Paul teaches us that instead of being anxious to instead pray with supplication and thanksgiving. The result of our obedience to that word is a peace that surpasses all understanding. Today, try to submit your worries to God and truly thank Him as you ask Him for what you need.

5. We Experience Negative Self-Talk Based on What We Believe Versus What We Prayed. We tend to talk ourselves out of truly believing that what we've prayed for can actually happen, which leads us into mental circles. When we pray, we should walk free but sometimes our minds can hold us in bondage because of the negative conversations taking place within. Today, ask God to teach you how to walk free.

6. Our Actions Won't Match Our Prayers. We've all heard the scripture, "Faith without works is dead." When we don't believe what we are praying, we won't begin the work concerning what we've asked God to complete. When we pray, we must begin operating in our lives in a way that shows God that we know He will meet us in that place. Today, ask God where He is waiting for us to begin.

7. We Won't Hear God in Response to Our Prayers. There is a meme that is floating around social media that says, "there is no need of praying if we already have our mind made up concerning the answer." The words of that meme could not be more true. When we have our minds made up concerning what God will speak, it's hard to hear His perspective on what we are praying for. Today, ask God to help you surrender your will so that you can be mentally free to hear His.

8. We turn to Ourselves rather than to God. When our mindset does not match our prayers, we tend to turn to ourselves to answer what we sought God to complete. The result of that is exhaustion, anxiety, anger, and frustration. We must learn to turn to God concerning our prayers and never turn away. He is the One with all power in His hands. Today, ask God to show you the places where you've turned to who you are, instead of who He is.

9. We Look at Our Power versus God's. We tend to pray for God to pay a bill, but then look at what is in our account and begin to worry. The key is to know that when we are praying to God for something, we must trust Him to do it through His power that works within us and that is far greater than anything we can see. Today, ask God to show us how to lean on His power and not our own concerning our prayers.

10. We Pray for something that Our Mind does not believe we are capable of receiving. The biggest part of prayer is belief. Jesus teaches us that if we have the faith of a mustard seed then we can move mountains. Yet, many of us struggle to gather even the faith of that seed. When our mindset does not match our prayers, we are lacking faith and demonstrating to God that we do not believe. Seek God concerning your struggles with belief. Today, be persistent in asking Him to help you believe until your mindset aligns with who He is.

God knows His children and their struggles with belief. He knows the mindset we have before we even approach Him in prayer.