ESOCS Devotional 8 March 2024 – Power in Persistent Prayers
MEMORY VERSE: “And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray and not to faint.” Luke 18:1
TEXT: LUKE 18:1-12
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
Read Other ESOCS Devotional here
The Bible is replete with exhortation to prayers, even with persistent prayers also. Persistent prayer is to repeatedly pray to God about a thing until you receive the desired answer from Him. It is to not relent, to not get tired or disillusioned by delayed answer. It is to put on patient waiting faith in continuous prayer till you receive answer. The importance of replacing the fainting spirit with waiting faith is properly emphasized in Isaiah 40:31: “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run, and not be weary, they shall walk, and not faint.”
The time you spend waiting increases your faith and draws you nearer to God. Perhaps, His desire to let you into a more intimate and robust communion with Him is the reason for the little delay in answer to your request. Paul in his second letter to the Thessalonians in Chapter 5:17, in three words, exhorts us to “Pray without ceasing”. In Romans 12:12, he exhorts us to be “Instant in Prayer”.
The first approach here is to develop a praying spirit, both in church, at home, at work, in public and in privacy. Once the praying spirit is cultivated, it will tap on patience and any prayer need requiring persistence will readily have it. Remember that whereas “A prayerful Christian is a powerful Christian”, “A prayerless Christian is a powerless Christian”. The quarter-day prayer hours of ESOCS would be a good way to cultivate the spirit of prayers. That is keeping faith with 6, 9, 12 and 3 o’clock prayers. ESOCS being the Aladura or Praying Band, we are called to a life of “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit and watching there unto with all perseverance and supplication for all Saints” (Eph. 6:18). The place of perseverance and watchfulness in persistent prayers, therefore, cannot be overemphasized, as it is a necessity.
In Luke 18:8, the Lord assures us that God will not delay in avenging His elect, and will not delay in answering our prayers. Remember that one thousand years with man is as one day with God. The expression that follows and needs to be noted is whether the Son of man (the Lord) will find faith on the day of visitation. But in order not to miss that day, you must not faint but keep faith alive by persistent prayers. What you call delay may be the set time of God, which is the best. It could also be as a result of attack on the heavenly messenger by principalities and powers, territorial evil spirit such as the prince of Persia. From the day Daniel started his prayer, the Angel Gabriel was dispatched but it took him 21 days to arrive because the prince of Persia withstood him. Persistent prayer is of the essence in any spiritual warfare.
- Which prayer requests have you abandoned because of delayed answer? Please resume now and you shall be answered by God.
- O God, I pray thee to quicken my Faith with watchfulness, perseverance, instantaneous and persistent praying spirit.
Further Reading: Daniel 6:10; 10:12-14; Philippians 4:6
ESOCS Devotional 8 March 2024
