A Parable about Persistence

Very few things come easy in this life.  The things that do come easy are usually not worth much or worth dying for.  Value in our world is normally tied to objects that either have intrinsic worth or become valuable through an extended period of time.  That is the way of the world we live in.  Why? The primary reason is the entrance of sin into our once perfect living environment.  When Adam sinned, his innocence was forfeited along with his unstained conscience and perfect garden world.  The roses that once bloomed constantly would now only be seasonal and would be joined by thorns and thistles.  What was a garden that only required light maintenance, if that, would now demand the sweat of the man's brow and the laborious toil of his hands.  The woman would bear children only through long, intense, and arduous laboring.  Nothing would come easy or without significant cost.

Life, therefore, demands persistence.  Edison, the great inventor, used to say of his incredible creative mind, "My success is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration."  This quality of persistence is also what we must have in our prayer life.  Some things are not going to happen for us or take place without this particular virtue of continual effort.

In Luke 18 Jesus talked about this very thing in a parable which taught that we ought always to pray and not lose heart regarding our requests made to God.  In the parable a woman took her demand for justice to a local judge,

who neither feared God or respected man. (Luke 18:2)

The judge basically ignored the old woman thinking that she was going to quit and just go away.  Well, she didn't.  She kept on making her request until she finally broke the will of the judge.  The point of the parable was that God, unlike the godless judge, is a God who personally cares about His children and desires to meet our every need. Thereore, when we pray we should pray in hope that God not only hears us but intends on answering our requests in His way and in His time.

Prayer is not always to be just short and sweet.  Prayer is not always meant to be a time of brief encounters with God and His Word.  Sometimes, perhaps more than sometimes, we need to labor longer and labor more often than we would like, or even expect.

Paul told the Thessalonian church,

Pray without ceasing (I Thess 5:17)

I want to encourage you today to keep praying for what your asking God to do.  Don't let go of it.  Don't resign yourself to some fate.  Stay focused on your original request!  Ask, and then ask again.  God hears, and you will hear from Him if you don't give up.  Let your prayer change as God changes your heart if necessary, but don't stop asking your heavenly Father for what only He can do!
Answered prayer is one of the greatest blessings to your own faith and also as a witness of God's power.  Keep praying!





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