“So I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:24

I have been living this scripture for the last few weeks unlike I have ever lived it in my life. You see, a few weeks ago, my apartment received some unwelcome visitors. Visitors who, as of lately and thanks to the banning of DDT, are not uncommon to the urban dwellers here in New York City. No, it wasn’t a “Joe’s Apartment” situation. It was more of a “Goodnight, sleep tight, don’t let the ____ ____ bite.” Yeah, I had THAT problem. That problem made me lose sleep for nearly two weeks and it made me sick. So like any good urban dweller, my roommates and I commenced to calling the authorities in to eradicate the problem. We had to turn our lives upside down in order to get our lives right side up. Through all of this I kept thinking, “There must be something else. How can I just trust human authority when I feel like it desires a bigger remedy?”

So I let the human folks do their job and got some sleep. Sleep, but I didn’t rest. I thought that we didn’t have a problem anymore until my roommates let me know they were still being affected. This was the day before we were having a follow-up appointment to make sure our problem was eradicated or eradicating. It was the last straw for me and I knew what I had to do. The night before our follow up, my roommates and I prayed. It started out as two of us, and as I listened, I sensed God telling me this needed the unification of the three of us. So there, in my bedroom, the three of us gathered and I prayed. I pleaded the purifying blood of Jesus over the apartment and everything in it. With authority I claimed eradication of our pests, the healing of our bodies and the restoration of our faith in God to work it out. I really believed and still believe everything I prayed for–down to the part where I said that I think our pests were the spawn of the devil. Even though to some it might sound a little crazy to pray to God about pests, I really do believe that he worked and is working in the situation.

That was all just one week ago. I have been sleeping but most importantly, I have been able to find my rest by trusting in God. I wanted to share this story with you to remind you that one of the biggest parts of prayer is sealing it up with belief. Prayer cannot be effective until we believe that what we ask for we will receive. But to also remember that when we ask, we cannot ask amiss. It is always in God’s will and in Jesus’ name that we pray. So here’s to believing that I am pest free and so will the new place that I move into in two weeks be!

I believe!