Perseverance In Prayer

“I know that I should probably pray this much all the time,” I confessed to her, “but that doesn’t always happen!”

Luke 18:1-8

Reference:  v.7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? (NIV Bible)

Explore:  We all have to make decisions each and every day of our lives.  However occasionally there is a decision that needs to be made that is incredibly significant, so significant that you feel it will change the direction of your future.   I recently found myself needing to make one of those significant decisions.  It consumed my thoughts and conversations so much that I found every spare moment I had I was praying to God asking for guidance.  I can remember picking my daughter up from school one day and she noticed that the radio was not playing in the car.  I explained to her that I felt like I had been praying every moment I had and so I had turned the radio off in the car so I could pray some more.  “I know that I should probably pray this much all the time,” I confessed to her, “but that doesn’t always happen!  But at the moment I feel like every spare moment I have, I’m spending it in prayer.”  And because of that perseverance in prayer, and because of God’s amazing grace, I have felt His loving presence throughout the whole process.

Application:  When Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray he told them a parable that showed them not to give up.  In our instant society today if we don’t get what we want immediately then we move on to find something else.  However, Jesus is teaching His disciples to be persistent, even when it comes to praying to God.  A lot of people find it difficult to pray to God on a regular basis – I include myself in that category.  And yet Jesus teaches us that it is important to continually go to God with our cares and concerns.  We mustn’t give up too easily.  I’ve heard of people praying for the salvation of their friends everyday for twenty years.  Now that’s perseverance in prayer.

Prayer:  Lord, may we continually bring all our prayers and petitions to You.  You are the mighty God, the creator of all things, with all power and authority.  May we place our whole lives in Your loving hands.  Amen.

What have you been praying for recently?  Don’t give up.  Start praying again.

Luke