Never Stop Praying

On one occasion, Jesus taught His disciples not to grow weary in praying (Luke 18:1). Why did He speak about this so specifically? Perhaps because the hardest part of praying is persevering in prayer itself, especially when that prayer goes unanswered for a long time.

How long have you been praying for your dream ? Have you persevered in doing it? What kinds of things make us stop praying? And how can we be consistent in prayer?

God's Delayed Answer

There was a time when I prayed for a friend who had just gotten to know our community at first I was so sure and full of faith that God would work in this matter and my prayers would be answered.

For a week I waited expectantly for God's answer. Two weeks later, I was still waiting while praying. After that, I began to wonder: why was there still no meaningful progress even after prayer?

I felt disappointed, and the intensity of my prayers decreased. Yet the following month, I heard good news about my friend's progress. They began to feel comfortable joining online worship, and from previously refusing, suddenly were willing to install the Zoom app so they could communicate online.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. – Proverbs 13:12

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How often do you stop praying when God's answer does not come? Does that mean God does not care about you?

Never stop praying, because God does not forget your prayers. It is not that He ignores your longings and hopes. Nor is it that He is unable to meet your needs. God is only waiting for the right time to answer them. Therefore, do not grow weary in prayer!

Remain Consistent in Prayer

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, persevere in prayer! – Romans 12:12

Once again, in the book of Romans, we are reminded to persevere in prayer. Often another reason that makes us stop praying is a lack of consistency. When you remember, you pray. When you do not remember, you do not pray for it.

I remember how long the process was before my father could be won in the Lord. When our whole family decided to become true disciples of Jesus, my strong-willed father firmly refused to know God.

On the other hand, we remained consistent in praying for him for years. We worked together to set an example through good deeds, and took turns sharing with him. Finally, after sixteen years, my father was baptized and received Jesus! I cannot imagine if our whole family had stopped or had not been consistent in praying for him. Perhaps to this day my father still would not know God.

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Pray consistently for what is your desire and your heart's longing . Do not hesitate to pray, much less underestimate the power of prayer. Only through prayer does God's power work.

What is holding you back from being consistent in prayer? Is it laziness, or pride? Because you think that praying and not praying make no difference? Or do you think that when you pray, you feel as if you are talking to an answering machine?

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” – Matthew 7:7

Jesus taught His disciples not only to ask (pray) but to seek (make an effort), even to knock on the door (strive), and the door will be opened. So, remain consistent in prayer, and surely, God will answer your prayers according to His will.

God's Timing and Our Timing Are Different

When the answer to prayer does not come, remember that God's timing and our timing are different.

But do not forget this one thing, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like one day. – 2 Peter 3:8

What does the verse above mean? Let us examine it through a number of events in the Bible:

• God told Noah that there would be a flood, but for about 100 years, it did not happen. Noah endured ridicule from the people around him until the flood truly came upon the earth (Genesis 5:32 ,7:6).
• God promised to give descendants to Abraham. Yet Abraham had to watch Sarah go through menopause and 25 years pass before Isaac was finally born (Genesis 12, 15, 18, 21).
• God came in a dream to Joseph when he was still a teenager, telling him that his father and brothers would bow down and pay him homage. Yet Joseph spent his twenties in Egypt as a slave. Only at the age of thirty did Joseph become prime minister (Genesis 37, 39, 45)
• God promised to deliver the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt, but 400 years passed before Moses was born; and even after that, Moses fled and spent 40 years in the wilderness because of his mistake (Exodus 12:41).
• God promised to give the Messiah, the Savior. Yet His people had to wait 400 years from the time of the last book of the Old Testament to the era of the New Testament.

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So, let us keep lifting up our prayers diligently. The answer to your prayer may not come instantly, and it may also not come according to your desire. Yet look—those mentioned above chose to keep praying consistently and without ceasing, until God's time to reveal His will came!

Related Articles:

• When Reality Does Not Align with Prayer
• Maximize the Power of Prayer in Your Life
• Use Time for These Three Things, While You Can Still Say “Today”
• Wise with Time: Make Every Moment Count
• Is Your Prayer Like a Fence or a Door?

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