Recently, I was talking with my counselor about a passage that has been weighing heavily on my heart: Mark 11:22-25.
Jesus says:
“Have faith in God… whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.”
As I read those words, one phrase jumped out at me: “this mountain.” For years, I have described the difficulties in my marriage as a mountain. A mountain of hurt. A mountain of misunderstandings. A mountain of broken trust and unresolved pain. It has felt so large that I couldn’t imagine getting around it, over it, or through it. Yet Jesus says that God can throw mountains into the sea. That promise filled me with hope, but it also raised a difficult question.
If Jesus says, “Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours,” then why have I been praying for so long without seeing the change I long for?
Am I not believing enough?
Am I asking for the wrong thing?
Am I simply supposed to wait?
Those questions led me to James 4:1-11.
The Problem Isn’t Always the Mountain
When I think about my struggles, my focus naturally goes to the mountain in front of me, but James directs my attention somewhere else.
He asks:
“What causes fights and quarrels among you?”
Then he answers:
“Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?”
James reminds us that our greatest obstacles are not always external. Sometimes the deeper issue is what is happening inside our own hearts. That doesn’t mean the problems in my marriage aren’t real. It doesn’t mean the pain isn’t real. What it does mean that before God moves mountains around me, He often wants to do work within me.
Sometimes the mountain God wants to move first is pride.
Sometimes it is bitterness.
Sometimes it is fear.
Sometimes it is the need to control outcomes that only He can control.
What Does It Mean to Believe?
When many people read Mark 11:24, they assume Jesus is describing a formula: Ask. Believe. Receive. But faith is not confidence in getting what I want. Faith is confidence in God. Jesus begins the passage with these words:
“Have faith in God.”
Not faith in circumstances, outcomes, or in my ability to believe hard enough. Faith in God. Biblical faith says, “I trust that God is good, God is wise, and God is powerful even when I cannot yet see what He is doing.” The prosperity gospel often treats faith like a lever that forces God’s hand. The Bible treats faith as surrender to God’s hand. Those are very different things.
Reading Mark 11 in Context
One thing my counselor helped me see is that Mark 11:24 cannot be separated from the verses surrounding it. We often focus on these words:
“Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”
But notice what comes immediately before and after. Jesus begins by saying:
“Have faith in God.”
Not faith in a specific outcome, our own ability to believe, or positive thinking. Faith in God Then, after speaking about prayer, Jesus says:
“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone.”
That command seems almost out of place at first. Jesus is talking about mountains, prayer, and faith. Then suddenly He starts talking about forgiveness. But perhaps it isn’t out of place at all. Could it be that Jesus is describing the kind of heart that trusts God completely, a heart that believes God is able to move mountains and is willing to release bitterness into God’s hands.
The passage begins with trust and ends with forgiveness. That means Mark 11:24 is not a blank check promising that every desired outcome will happen exactly as we envision it. Instead, it is an invitation to pray boldly, trust completely, and surrender fully. Faith is not convincing God to do what I want, it’s trusting God enough to place my mountain in His hands.
When I think about my marriage, that distinction matters. For a long time, my prayers have focused almost entirely on the outcome I wanted. I wanted the mountain gone, but maybe Jesus is calling me to something deeper. Maybe He is asking me to trust Him with the mountain while He works not only on the situation, but also on my heart.
That is where James 4 becomes so important. James answers the question that naturally follows Mark 11. What does a surrendered heart actually look like? His answer is humility, repentance, submission to God, drawing near to Him, and receiving His grace.
James Helps Explain Mark
My counselor pointed me to James because James explains something important.
James writes:
“You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”
At first glance, that verse can feel discouraging, but I don’t think James is saying that every unanswered prayer is caused by selfish motives. Instead, he is teaching us that God is concerned with more than simply granting requests. He is shaping hearts.
The question isn’t merely:
“What am I asking God to do?”
The deeper question is:
“What is God doing in me while I am asking?”
That is exactly where James takes us.
He calls us to humility.
He calls us to submit ourselves to God.
He calls us to draw near to God.
And then he gives this beautiful promise:
“Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.”
The Blessing I Didn’t Expect
When I pray about my marriage, I naturally want God to change the situation, and he may or may not. I continue to pray that He will, but James reminds me that God’s greatest blessing may not begin with changing my circumstances. It may begin with changing me.
The blessing may be greater patience, compassion, forgiveness, and dependence upon Him. Sometimes we pray for God to remove the mountain. Sometimes God uses the mountain to bring us closer to Him. Both can be acts of His grace.
The Connection to Forgiveness
It is significant that immediately after speaking about faith and prayer, Jesus speaks about forgiveness. I’ve written several times about forgiveness in previous blogs here and here.
He says:
“Whenever you stand praying, forgive.”
That command is not accidental. Unforgiveness can become its own mountain. Resentment can become its own prison. Forgiveness does not excuse wrongdoing. It does not mean pretending that wounds never happened, but forgiveness releases the debt into God’s hands instead of demanding payment ourselves. Perhaps Jesus knew that some mountains cannot be moved until we release what we have been carrying.
Waiting Is Not Wasted
One of the hardest lessons of faith is that God’s delays are not necessarily God’s denials. Many of the heroes of scripture spent years waiting. Abraham, Joseph, David, and the disciples waited. Waiting is often where faith is formed. When I look at my own situation, I still don’t have all the answers. I still pray, hope and believe God is able to move mountains, but I am beginning to understand that faith is not demanding a timetable from God. Faith is trusting Him while I wait.
Conclusion
When I first read Mark 11, my focus was entirely on the mountain. Today, I find my focus shifting toward the God who stands above the mountain. James reminds me that God’s grace flows toward humble, unselfish hearts. He calls me to submit myself to God, resist the devil, draw near to Him, and trust His work in my life.
The promise of Mark 11 was never simply that mountains disappear, the greater promise is that God is present. Whether He removes the mountain today, tomorrow, or in a way I never expected, I can trust Him, and while I wait, I will continue to pray, forgive, believe, and draw near to the One who gives more grace.
One Response
Great Biblical Article!