God Wants You to Pray Persistently
Continuing to wait in prayer and doing nothing, you believe God will see your faith. God may be teaching you the virtue of patience and you accept God's silence with a stoic resignation that your prayers have not been heard yet.
Continuing to pray longer and harder, you hope (not trust) that God will eventually answer those prayers. Jesus implied persistence in the parable of the man who kept knocking on his neighbor's door in the middle of the night asking for bread, until the neighbor got up and gave him the bread to make him go away (Luke 11: 5-8). His persistent action produced the desired response. In the parable about the widow, she kept returning to an unjust judge begging for justice. She wore away at him until he relented and granted justice (Luke 18: 2-5).
Sometimes praying seems to leave you feeling like the nagging wife. You hope for an answer to your heart's desires. Pray persistently and you will get what you want. But is that really what Jesus was saying? Will God grant your request just to get rid of you therefore allowing him to attend to countless others so demanding of His attention?
Surely, you know God is not like that. Jesus personifies the character of God in the flesh. The Bible shows various accounts of Him being prepared to help the needy and showing compassion towards them. God always hears and answers prayers. Sometimes, the immediate response to a prayer is a resounding 'Yes.' At other times He responds negatively despite persistent praying and patience you exhibit as the wait continues.
Have no doubt. God wants you to pray persistently. Why? The life of the apostle Paul is an example of faith. Paul was believed to have "a thorn in the flesh" (2 Corinthians 12:7). There is no description but readers believe the "thorn" was a chronic and debilitating problem that kept him from doing his work. Paul prayed many times asking for God to take the 'thorn' away and waited in patience for an answer. But God didn't take the "thorn" away.
Paul got something better. Paul prayed persistently with faith and heard God's voice. Paul learned God's will in his life. God told him, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."(2 Corinthians: 9) Paul realized that his 'thorn in the flesh' prevented him from being conceited. Paul had many wonderful spiritual experiences and developed great preaching prowess and it was difficult not to brag. The 'thorn' kept him humble. Paul was aware of his weaknesses and knew that his achievements were gifts from God and not of his own making.
You see, returning to God again and again in prayer keeps your communication lines with Him open. It gives God an opportunity to communicate with you and more importantly, gives you an opportunity to hear Him. It is usually after you have prayed and prayed that you run out of words and then, you stop talking and hear God in the silence.
Praying persistently is a way to rely on God for His solution to a problem. You may think that you know the solution so you pray and pray for it, but your solution may not be God's. There are times when God has to bend your will to match His and it is only when you pray persistently that you begin to realize that you have to let go of your own solutions and let God work in your life. Oftentimes, our first prayers are not the best ones and so sometimes, God makes us wait. If we keep on praying, God will reshape our desires until they match His desires.
Pray persistently because you know the communications lines are open and God is listening. Actively speak with God to open the way for resolutions to come back to you. Do not lose heart. Keep praying and hold onto your faith. Hold on to the greatest opportunity by allowing God to work through you, in you and with you.
Pray persistently for the right reasons. Experience God's presence, goodness, mercy and power as He touches your life!
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Wondering why your prayers are not granted? Want to know what to do for your prayers to be granted? Check out www.how-to-pray-effectively.com and learn how to make your prayers more powerful and effective.
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by: BabesTan-Magkalas
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