"And He spoke a parable to them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint. Saying, "There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man; And there was a widow in that city, and she came to him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while, but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the LORD said, "Hear what the unjust judge says. And shall not God avenge His own elect, which cry day and night to Him, though He bear long with them? I tell you' that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of Man comes, shall He find faith on the earth?"
Luke 18: 1-8
Have you ever felt like giving up? Have you prayed and prayed to God about some particular thing or problem and it seems that He's never going to send the answer? I know that I have, and we have all been there. It's so easy to get confused and wonder if the LORD is hearing our prayers because it sometimes seem that the answers doesn't come fast enough. It's then that we have to hold on and keep the faith. One thing that I do realize is that I know that God hears me and that He will send an answer but on His own time.
"And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He hears us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him"
I John 5: 14-15
God does not work on our time-table. But, it is so easy to lose heart when we pray and don't get the answers as quickly as we would like. It is then time to lay that anchor deep and have faith that the LORD will answer us. There are some petitions that I have put before Him that I refuse to give up on, such as the salvation of my family. Some years ago I wrote down all the names of my family and put them into my prayer handkerchief and asked the LORD to save them. As I sit here today and write there are still names there that haven't found Christ yet. The day will come when they are saved and living a victorious life in Jesus Christ and I refuse to give up on them. The LORD didn't give up on me. We must not give up when it seems that the answers aren't coming quick enough.
Perhaps you may be praying for loved ones to be saved, or you may need vindication from your enemies who torment you constantly. It may be that you're praying for a besetting sin that you can't seem to get the victory over. I'm here to encourage you to put your faith in Jesus Christ and don't stop praying. He says, "Those who cry unto Me day and night, though I bear long with them, I will avenge them speedily, but will you hold on and know that I'm a God that don't lie? I will come to you; I will answer, but will I find you trusting Me with all your heart or will you only put your faith in what you can see?"
The LORD is just. Would you put your faith in man's word and not God's? In this life I have been promised many things by people and I gave them the benefit of the doubt and believed that they would perform what they said they would do. Many times though I have been let down because they went back on their word. It was hard to trust them again. But God is not like man. What He says He will do. We as humans can be impatient in waiting for the answers.
"God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: has He said, and shall He not do it? Or has He spoken, and shall He not make it good?"
Numbers 23:19
Friends, God honors our faith. Faith is not something that can be seen but it's trusting that the LORD hears and will answer us when it seems all the cards are stacked against us. He is speaking to you today to not lose heart. Don't give up if you're not getting the answers right now. Sometimes the moment we decide to give up is right before God comes with the answer. He has promised to hear our cries. He will not let you down. Continue praying to Him. He sees all that you're going through. He has not deserted you. He loves you and cares for you. Keep holding on and stay anchored in His Word.
