Keep Praying

01.18.12

Luke 18.1 1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart... NASB

The word steadfast comes to mind. We are to be steadfast in prayer. We are to be persistent in prayer. Jesus was telling His men, and us, to pray without ceasing. At all times we are to pray and not lose heart.

Several months back I took up a job with a sales organization. I had never done cold-calls before so I was in for something new. I have to admit I was intimidated by the job because I was convinced I had to create the sales. And so each day I went out wondering how I was going to do since I thought I had to create the sales for that day. I prayed a lot. My prayer was something like, “Lord, put me in front of the people You know that I need to talk to who will buy what I am selling.” It was the wrong prayer. But God was gracious to me and I seemed to find people each week to talk to and to convince that what I am selling was for their good. I don’t pray that prayer any more.

I do pray for God’s blessing as I go and I do pray for His presence as I go, but I trust Him that the people I need to find are there but I must be out there to find them. And I thank Him for the sales I make. My job is to be out there trusting God. I am not to lose heart in His provision but to praise Him and thank Him for the job, and the means to do it.

There are times when my heart gets weak. There are times when I look around and can’t seem to find my heart. That’s when I pray to Him for courage, and when I praise Him for what He’s provided in the past. God is in charge of all things: even the things in our puny little individual lives. Our job is to be out there where He sends. Someone once said, the key to a successful sales career is to talk to lots of people: the good news is, there are lots of people. I believe that. and I believe it is that kind of thinking that helps me in what I do. God expects me to pray about that and to thank Him for the means to do what I do.

Sometimes I marvel at the provision of God in the situations I find myself. For instance, I have no control over people. I have no control over their schedules or their lives or their minds. Sometimes I show up at their places and they aren’t there. Sometimes I’m driving up just to watch them drive away (that happened to me last Friday). But sometimes I show up to talk to one person and end up selling to him and the person he’s with – only God is in charge of opportunities like that. I have come to believe that the way to succeed at this job is to be out there where the people are and leave the results to God. You know what? It works!

What are you praying for that at times your heart seems to be absent? What do you need from God that seems to be eluding you? Keep praying and thanking God for what He’s doing and remember what He’s done – He is with you. Your situation is precious to God for He is working in it to build your trust in Him. Our prayers are not just evidence that our needs are being met but further, that our trust in Him is growing. Maturity looks something like this: facing the impossible; praying the impossible; growing in faith; and watching the impossible happen. I hope we all are maturing…