Rather than a humorous anecdote to set herself at ease, the speaker’s first words were a praise report. She wanted to publicly thank God for answering a specific prayer. The audience clapped excitedly. Then she added another detail to her moment of praise, which caused the audience to erupt with cheer.
She’d been praying and waiting for this answer for 28 years.
28 years is a long, long time. What benefit is there in persistently praying for 28 years?
This woman knew that she was never alone. She believed that God was always listening to her. God was by her side every moment.
The longer we pray for something, the more isolated we may feel. It’s easier to find warriors who will pray with us when a request is new. But, unless personally attached, their devotion to our prayer request tends to fade. As weeks and months pass, our unanswered request may weaken on the priority list of others as newer requests take their place.
Jesus felt the burden of isolation. That night in Gethsemane, He selected only a few disciples, urging them to pray with Him. As Jesus agonized in prayer, His prayer warriors fell asleep, repeatedly. Though His request was huge, though it distressed Him physically, Jesus didn’t stop praying.
While no one else around Him felt or understood His struggle, Jesus knew that He was not alone. He persisted in prayer because He knew that His Heavenly Father was hanging on to His every word. His Father was there.
We are never alone. God is active and personally attentive to us, even when it’s not always obvious. The best way to have a growth experience with God is to persist in prayer. With God, we are not stuck in a hopeless end.
God fills us with an endless hope, reassuring us that we are never alone.
{Find the other posts in this series on persistent prayer here.}
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Sabrina Jacques-Rowe
Communication Leader
Henderson Highway Church