Pray With Persistence

“Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” – James 5:17-18

Think about how important of a role persistence plays in our lives. If you want something, it often takes persistence to obtain it. Very rarely do you get exactly what you want on the first try.

For example, consider a basketball player who wants to become a great three-point shooter. She doesn’t just walk onto the court and immediately have a great shooting percentage. She has to work at it. She has to practice shooting, and she has to keep shooting over and over again before she can achieve her goal of becoming a great shooter. 

The way we practice prayer is no different. If we want something, if we have a desire for something, we must pray for it persistently. Too often we just pray for something one time, and if the prayer isn’t answered right away, we give up.

What if the basketball player practiced shooting for one day, and when she realized she wasn’t shooting as well as she wanted to, she just gave up? It’s not realistic for her to expect to become a great shooter after one day of practice, right? Well, in the same way, we must realize that we can’t expect every single one of our prayers to be answered the first time we pray them. 

Take Elijah for instance. James talks about how he prayed earnestly, and the Lord answered his prayers. Elijah prayed repeatedly. He didn’t give up when his circumstances didn’t change right away. He didn’t get discouraged in waiting for God to answer Him. Instead, he prayed persistently, and the Lord rewarded his continued faith. 

I want to encourage you to pray persistently as well. Don’t get frustrated and give up just because you don’t get an instant answer to your prayers. Don’t sell God short because you can’t see all that He is doing behind the scenes. Rather, continue praying for whatever is on your heart. Keep praying for that new opportunity to come about. Keep praying for God to give you a best friend. Keep praying for wisdom to make the right decision. Whatever it is, just keep praying.

If you are earnestly seeking the Lord and following Him, He will lead you in the right direction with wisdom and discernment. But in the meantime, don’t give up on your prayers just because you don’t see immediate results.