SHAMELESS PERSISTENCE

I came across this expression while reading the familiar passage in (Luke 11:1-13) recently from the NLT. The KJV uses the word "importunity" in verse 8 to describe the man who kept asking his neighbor for bread to feed his unexpected company. The NKJ uses "persistence" which I could understand a little better, but "shameless persistence" really grabbed my attention! This passage covers the answer to the disciples question on how to pray, and also about asking, seeking, and knocking, and about the Father giving the Holy Spirit to those who ask. A very important concept of prayer that we often do not follow.

Our usual approach to prayer is to make our request once, or maybe twice, and then go on to new requests that are constantly coming to our attention. This concept of "shameless persistence" is definitely not practiced by many Christians that I know. Perhaps this is why so few of our prayers are answered. Some people of faith think it is showing a lack of faith to ask more than once for anything. These words of Jesus would seem to contradict that theory, and encourage us to keep on asking, seeking and knocking over a period of time. Perhaps this is how God determines just how serious we are about our requests. I see nothing in scripture to make me think that God will not answer our requests offered in the right way. This depends on our motive for asking, to be sure it is within His will, and of course the timing is often not according to our understanding, but definitely His. Because of His foreknowledge, He often withholds the answer until He knows we are ready to act in the appropriate manner. Often He needs to complete some work in us before He can give us what we think we are ready for!

There are many reasons for God to withhold immediate answers to prayer, but this should not discourage us from continuing to pray. Often we realize much later, why an immediate answer to our prayer would not have been best for us at the time. We must believe that if our relationship with our heavenly Father is as intimate as it should be, we are not likely to be asking for things that are not according to His perfect will. It might be good to study all the passages we can find on prayer in the Bible, and see how much we still have to learn! There are also many good books around on prayer, that are well worth the reading, in my opinion.

Sincerely submitted

Dave Jamer