Persist

Luke 18:¹ “One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.” (emphasis added).

Jesus is saying, look up—do not give up because persistent prayer Focuses You On God, Clarifies Your Request, and Prepares You For The Answer. God is preparing you for the answer so do not give up. The story is told of a missionary who was in a remote village for eight years. And for all eight years, the missionary was there, he was labouring, praying, evangelizing, and witnessing but not a single soul committed to Christ for all eight years. At the end of the eighth year, the missionary had a crusade, and over eight thousand five hundred people, in fact, the entire village, committed to Christ in that one night.

The question is, what if he had given up in year one, year two, year five, or year seven? God was preparing him for the harvest that He, God, was bringing. Do not give up, God is preparing you for what He is preparing for you. There are things that God is preparing for you, so God is preparing you. I say to single people that the prayer to pray is, ‘Lord, prepare me for the person, You are preparing for me’. There are things and places that God is preparing for you and praying consistently actually prepares you for those places and things.

Interestingly, for some people, God may have given them a thousand souls each year for eight years, and that would have still been a miracle. Glory to God for the churches that have a thousand souls commit to Christ yearly. That will be truly amazing! However, for the missionary, God waited eight years and gave him over eight thousand souls, in fact, the entire village. Amazing God. Jeremiah 29:¹¹ “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (LB, emphasis added). Praying persistently not only keeps me focused on God, but it also helps clarify my request, and it prepares me for where God is taking me, for what God is preparing for me.

And the fourth reason why we should keep praying when there appears to be no answer is, Persistent Praying Strengthens Our Faith. In other words, when you keep praying even though it appears as if the answer is not forthcoming, it strengthens your faith. There are a lot of things you can have on earth. But the most important thing you have is not your car, your wealth, your education, your intelligence, your network, your bank account, and not your net worth. The most important thing you can have on earth is your faith.

Prayer: Father, as I seek Your face, fix my eyes on God, clarify my requests, prepare me for the answers, and strengthen my faith, in the Mighty Name of Jesus. Amen!