Cooking Instructions for Answered Prayer

“So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up” (Galatians 6:9)

If praying was like a baking a loaf of bread, what is the cook time? 10 minutes? 30? The answer: Until it’s done. One day Jesus told His disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up:

“There was a judge in a certain city,” He said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’ The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’” (Luke 18:1-5)

God is a good Father, not an unjust judge. How much more will He grant your request! But He really likes persistence. Here is an acronym to remember, PUSH: Pray Until Something Happens. My mom (we call her the “persistent widow”) is proof. She started praying for the failed marriage of my best friend’s parents 20 years ago. Year after year, she just kept praying—telling the wife, “God can repair your marriage.” We thought she was crazy. But 20 years later, Eric and Lisa remarried, with their 4 kids crying tears of joy at the wedding. They both told my mom, “Thank you so much for never giving up praying.”

What amazing story is on the other end of your persistent prayer? Who knows what God will do if you continue to ask! As with baking bread, you’ve got to keep the heat steady until the loaf is done. The “heat” of your prayer is your faith: you keep the oven warm by steadfastly believing God for an answer. The Bible says, “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results” (James 5:16). Earnest means “intense, strong, and heartfelt.” That is what God wants from you.

I want to encourage you: Keep your prayer in the oven, a little bit longer. Jesus is telling you today to: “Always pray and never give up.” God sees your desires and hears your prayers—keep praying!