Yesterday I mentioned that prayer is the lifeblood of Christianity. It can also be one of the most difficult parts of being a believer. It’s easy to give up after you pray once or twice about something. The difficult part is continuously praying for something until you see the answer manifest itself.
When we pray for healing for ourselves or someone else, we must remain steadfast with our prayers until the mission is complete. I had been of the mind that praying once or twice about something on behalf of yourself or another was sufficient because God already knows our wants and needs, therefore, I was praying to bring the topic up to our all-knowing God … period. I was aware of the parable (story) of the persistent widow and the unjust judge. Luke 18:1-8 tells the story. A widow sought justice against an adversary of hers from a judge who “neither feared God, not cared what people thought”. The widow came to him repeatedly until the unjust judge meted out justice on her behalf due to her persistence which had become an annoyance to the judge. Now the judge doesn’t represent God, for God is never annoyed with his children. The story is nothing more than an illustration of how we are to “always pray and not give up”.
The lesson to be learned here is that “God may be pleased to answer a prayer very soon after the believer sends his request heavenward. But God may be just as pleased to withhold an answer for an extended time and require that the believer continue praying.” (1) God already knows the outcome because he is the one who will bring it about. The prayers aren’t for him. The prayers are for us, to encourage us and give us something to trust God for and when the answer comes our faith shall be bolstered and our persistence shall be rewarded.
“Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.”- Psalm 55:17
Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.
In His name & for His glory,
Richard Keller
Bread of Life Ministries
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