I believe that, surely, it must be God’s will that I love Him more than I do, and that my faith be greater than it is.
I am taught, however, that I must have faith for my prayers to be answered. If my faith is weak; if my belief is not strong; it seems that God will not answer my prayers for greater faith or stronger belief and love of Him.
So, what can I do with my need for God-given faith if the little faith I have is not great enough for Him to grant what I ask Him for? How can I avoid the Catch 22 of having too little faith for my prayer for more faith to be answered?
I ask:
1. to ensure my Salvation and to have the “Blessed Assurance” I see in others ;
2. to know His will for me and to be made strong enough to do it;
3. to serve him (and to be rid of a desire for some form of recognition) .
If it is my motives that are impure in my prayer for increased faith and love of God, where can I get the faith I need for him to answer my prayer to rid me of those impure motives?
Building faith is like building muscles. It takes exercise. You wouldn’t sit back and ask the trainer for increased strength, you’d ask him to develop a training regimen for you to follow so you could build your own strength.
Faith comes through hearing the word of the Lord (Romans 10:17). That’s step one of God’s training regimen. I’ve pointed out verse after verse that proves you’re saved when you ask and no one can ever take that away. Now you have to decide to believe it. That’s step 2. (John 6:29) I’ve also referred you to Romans 12:1-2 to discover His will for you. Step 1. Now you have to do it. Give your whole life to Him. Step 2.
As for the strength, it comes the same way physical strength comes, through exercise. If you need more faith before you can do something that will help your faith grow, you’ll be stuck forever. Stepping out in faith really means doing something you’re not sure you can do, trusting that God will give you the ability when you need it. If you already knew you could do it, you wouldn’t need more faith. Get it? Do the thing and get the faith.
That’s the regimen. Act in faith, watch God respond. As you see Him respond, your faith will grow. Act again, watch again. Keep repeating this until you no longer have any question about it.