If
you’re anything like me, I imagine sometimes you find yourself wrestling with
God in your prayer life. It is a challenging experience.
Jesus
told a short—yet powerful—parable in Luke 19:1-8. It goes as follows (ESV):
And he told them a parable
to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, “In a
certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And
there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me
justice against my adversary.’ For a while he refused, but afterward he said to
himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow
keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down
by her continual coming.’” And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge
says. And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night?
Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily.
Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
We can learn several
valuable lessons from this poignant story.
First of all, pray fervently
and never give up hope. Sometimes we grow weary and want to throw in the towel
prematurely when it comes to our prayer life. Over the past few years there
have been a couple of major things I’ve been praying consistently about. I’ve
been waiting for God to answer definitively, but have not yet seen these
particular prayer requests come to fruition. Waiting has been emotionally and
spiritually exhausting at times. Sometimes it has gotten discouraging and
confusing.
And I’ll confess at times
I’ve wondered, “Why haven’t you come through for me yet, Lord? What’s the hold
up? Why the long wait?” At times I’ve realized that my patience has been
wearing down. I’ve also done a lot of self-evaluation to determine if what I’m
asking of the Lord is not only reasonable but also in accordance with his will,
or if my requests are basically self-centered and selfish in nature.
But I know in my heart of
hearts that my heavenly Father does indeed care and is listening to my
petitions. I’ve just got to trust that he sees the big picture and is working
all things out for the greater good in his own time. Leaning on the Lord and
not my own understanding has been a challenging but necessary journey.
Second, in the parable, the
widow’s persistence with the secular judge for personal justice eventually paid
off. It was as if she slowly-but-surely wore him down by her continual appeals.
Even though he wasn’t a very kind or righteous individual, he ultimately gave
her what she asked for—that justice be served. In his case, it seems he simply
wanted to get her off his back.
Jesus goes on to say that if
such a calloused and uncompassionate individual, who really didn’t care about
the widow’s plight in the first place, gave into her constant badgering, how
much more will our heavenly Father—who cares deeply about each one of us—answer
our prayers in the affirmative?
Whether it’s justice,
sustenance, strength, financial stability, healing, protection, companionship,
success, or something else we’re seeking, God is interested in our well-being.
He wishes to help his children. He wants to meet our needs and give us the
desires of our hearts.
Third, the parable reveals a
truth to us about the great importance of faith. Jesus asks, “When the Son of
Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (v. 8b) The widow believed that if
she refused to give up, her cause would be upheld. She was, therefore,
tenacious and steadfast.
What about you? How strong
is your belief in God’s goodness and ability to answer your prayers and satisfy
your needs? Do you possess enough faith—even if it’s only the size of a mustard
seed—to move mountains?
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