Every morning long before my alarm clock goes off my cat Dallas uses an arsenal of tactics to wake me. He meows, taps my face with his paw and gives me head butts. When all else fails he’ll sit on my chest and lick my face. Sometimes I’m just not ready to get up so I put him out of my bedroom and close the door. Not to be denied he scratches on my door until I get up and feed him. Dallas’ refusal to give up until he’s fed illustrates the persistent nature of effective prayers.
Luke 11:9 says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” Many Christians think this scripture means you only pray once for something. However, this verse uses continuous verbs. Therefore, the correct interpretation means we’re to ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking and knock and keep on knocking. Ever notice how persistent children are when they want something? They’re like a broken record, they keep asking. However, unlike human parents, God doesn’t get annoyed when we keep repeating our request. Luke 18:1 says, “Men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” In other words, we’re not to lose heart and stop praying.
In Luke 18:2-8 Jesus teaches a lesson on effective prayer. In this parable the widow refused to give up even though the unjust judge ignored her request. Her persistence paid off because the judge eventually honored her continued pleas. If an unfair Judge responded to the widow’s persistence, how much more will your Heavenly Father do for you? I admit it’s easy to lose hope and give up when it seems your prayers have fallen on deaf ears. If I had my way my prayers would yield immediate results. But God operates in His own timing. He’s not bound by time, space or circumstance.
Did you know persistent prayer looks like faith to God? God responds to faith. Faith moves things from the supernatural to manifestation in the natural. The power of persistent prayer is that it gets God’s attention. Effective prayers are persistent. To persistent in prayer means you continue to pray through adversity, uncertainty, fear, doubt, discouragement and the passage of time. You keep praying despite how you feel, what your ears hear, and your eyes see. The intent of persistent prayer is to align you with God’s will. When your prayers align with God’s will, what you’ve been praying for will surely come to pass. Therefore, effective prayers demand intentional determination whereby like Dallas, you refuse to give up until you receive what you’ve been praying for.
What have you stopped praying for because time and circumstances have gnawed away at your faith? Now is the time to continue in prayer. Trust God for the answer because your breakthrough is closer than its ever been before. You must be persistent for your prayers to be effective.
Until next time…Be Blessed!
Rev. Cynthia Jackson
Rhema Inspirations
Rev. Cynthia Jackson is the administrator of the Rhema4U Blog and Innovations Ministries Director. Rev. Jackson is a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was licensed and ordained under the tutelage of Bishop David G. Evans. She is an associate minister at Bethany Baptist Church located in Lindenwold, New Jersey. Rev. Jackson founded Innovations Ministries in 2001. Innovations Ministries provides dynamic and innovative programs and services for individuals and families dealing with various health-related issues. She is a gifted teacher, preacher, conference speaker and writer. God has anointed Rev. Jackson to be a spiritual midwife with a passion to empower others to birth God's vision for their lives. Rev. Jackson holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Organizational Management from Eastern University, a Master of Science Degree in Health Administration from Saint Joseph's University and a Master of Science Degree in Christian Counseling from Cairn University.
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