Never Give Up

“When is this trial going to be over?”  “Why should I pray?”  “God’s not listening to me!”  “I can’t fight these issues anymore, it’s too much!”  “Where is God?”  As the problems mount upon us, we can quickly become terrified in the situation.  So, terrified we decide to waive the white flag of defeat!  Retreat!  Well, it’s easier to wave the white flag; instead of continuing to pray. Recently a young believer approached me with a question, “If I approach God’s throne again about an issue does it show a lack of faith?”  My response, “How badly do you want an answer?” 

 When we approach the Throne Room of God in prayer, we expect an answer.  It’s not a wrong expectation; we should expect God to answer because it’s a promise of His Word.  Yet, who hasn’t had the cricket noise experience during our prayer time?  We pray with urgency, faith and read the Word but God’s presence can’t be felt or His voice is silent.  It’s very alarming to us, why does God seem distant?  Why isn’t there any response? We can't give up praying because we don't see the answer.  Daniel prayed the first time, God heard his request. Yet, it wasn't answered right away because of war in the heavens. Daniel stayed persistent in his request until the answer came, so we must do the same. 

Daniel 10:12 says, “The he continued, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel.  Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before God, you words were heard, and I have come in response to them.”

     Is it easy to keep praying without any evidence of an answer?  No it’s not easy but that’s what faith is all about.  “We walk by faith and not by sight.”  Like Daniel, we will sometimes get delays in our answers to our prayers.  God's not ignoring you or your situation, He sees all.  Right now, you may feel abandoned, rejected, or alone but that's a lie from the devil. Don't stop praying! God hears every word we pray, I am confident of it because of this promise found in Psalm 34:15, "The EYES of the LORD are on the righteous and his EARS are attentive to their cry."  In other words, God is PRESENT! 

     Although you may not “feel” God is present because He feels distant or silent, it doesn’t mean God is ignoring your cry.  God is acquainted with all your way because He made you.  God knows when you sit, when you rise, your thoughts from afar. (Psalm 139:2-4) Besides all of this, He has every single hair of your hair numbered. (Luke 12:7)  He is aware of what’s going on right now!

“Cast your cares upon the Lord for HE CARES FOR YOU!” I Peter 5:7

So, keep seeking Him!  Don’t lose heart or get frustrated with requests yet to be answered.  If anything it’s time to dig your heels in the ground with a determined heart, I will touch the Lord!  Don’t give up!  Christ said not to give up!  “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should ALWAYS PRAY and NOT GIVE UP!  

     We must understand some important truths in this parable to gain insight to prayer.  First, “Christ is not likening God to an unrighteous judge.  The parable is on the ‘How much more variety.”  If a wicked man will sometimes do good, even if from bad motives, how much will God do right?” (Luke by Leon Morris) 

     Second, we need to understand the key characters of this parable: judge, widow, and the elect.  The judge doesn’t fear God or worried about the vengeance of God upon his life.  Also, he doesn’t care about the people he serves or what’s happening to his town.  Yet, he is only one with power to change or bring deliverance.  Next, we have the widow woman who is being oppressed by her enemy.  Why is this so important?  In Biblical times, if a woman didn’t have a husband she had no protection or voice in society.  Also, if she didn’t have a male child, she was considered cursed or looked down upon.  It’s not how God viewed the women or widows, so let me be clear on that.  Nevertheless, this widow needs relief from the oppression, so she seeks the only One in her town who could grant her request.  She doesn’t just ask once for her request but until her desire was granted.  She was going to wear him out!  The judge recognized her persistence to the point of her “bothering him” so he grants it.  Yet, Jesus teaches us an important principle about prayer from the elect: persistence pays off.  Our Heavenly Father loves us; we are His chosen ones who cry out day and night.  It’s only those who are diligent in prayer will see the rewards.  (Hebrews 11:6)  Our Father will not put off our request, He will answer us quickly.  Keep in mind; God’s timing isn’t like ours.  A delayed answer doesn’t mean God is absent or unaware of the situation; He is working behind the scenes to show His glory to all.

Written On the Capsule of My Heart

                                                                               
 Above my desk, I have a cork board of promises.  All of the promises are scriptures, confirmations, and dreams spoke from God about my life.  It’s a daily reminder of God’s spoken promise to me.  It wasn’t spoken through the mouth of man; it was spoken directly to my heart from God.  As each promise was spoken into my life; I have written it upon the capsule of my heart.  Deep within my soul I hold tightly to those precious promises; only shared with a select few.  Yet, the promises are held within the hand of God to fulfill them.  As the sparkle in my eyes eagerly awaits the fulfillment; God’s preparing my life for it.  As each day dawns, my life is challenged to grow for God’s call.  All of preparation comes through trials and tests, lessons of my past, continued prayer, and education from different seasons of my life.  All of seasons hold different lessons to prepare me; each one molds the dream to reality. 

     When I am too weak to fight the good fight of faith, God reminds me who I belong to.  When I walk in the midst of trouble, I can still have peace.  I can’t escape Him because the love of my devotion runs deep, the cross keeps me anchored.   The promises of God will be fulfilled because He spoke them.  I can’t force the promise to appear, God’s timing produces the blessings.  God never disappoints us; He will never fail us.  Our best intentions is what God has for us, it’s one of the beautiful benefits of belonging to God.  

Often we get impatient for God to move within our lives, we don’t see the evidence of our faith.  It’s during the waiting periods; we learn to trust God with the outcome.  We can’t have a harvest without a seed planted or tending to the field, it does require our actions.  Our faith contributes to the outcome but we can’t force the seed to grow.   When we have done our part; we have to trust God with His.  The walk of faith starts with a relationship with God but it’s nurtured through love and trust.   The experiences of life will eventually test our faith but God will bring loving assurances to protect it.  When we are tested; we must be faithful.  We can’t stop being faithful because of the length of the trial or the period of waiting.  Our faithfulness will declare our devotion, so God will entrust us with more.  Faithfulness produces the reality of dreams but the timeframe belongs to God.  God’s dreams for your life will be fulfilled; that’s a guarantee.   It’s time to write it down upon a tablet to hold unto.  

Then the Lord replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.  For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not be proven false.  Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.” ~Habakkuk 2:2-3

Also, meditate upon those moments to build your faith of God’s promise.  Carefully listen to Gods’ voice to guide your steps, realize life’s difficulties produce opportunities for growth, and faithfulness produces blessings.   

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.” ~Psalm 32:8

 Recognize there is a cost for God’s dream, a person cost.  It’s a cost of sacrifice, being misunderstood, trial’s to falter your faith, and even persecution possibly from family.  The journey of life will prepare you for the dream but your faith in God will fulfill it.  Although his dream saved the lives of Israelites; his dream came with a price.  Although he was deeply loved by his father, he questioned and rebuked his dream.  Out of jealous for their father’s love and his dreams, his own brothers sold him into slavery.  As he entered the home of Pharaoh’s officials, the Lord granted him success.  Yet, the enemy tempted Joseph’s commitment to God through Potiphar’s wife.  Although he did nothing wrong; he went to prison.  Joseph was favored with the prison warden who gave him certain responsibilities for the jail.  Each experience brought Joseph opportunity to be faithful, so he was granted favor with God and man.  Although the prison doors held his life; it didn’t stop the preparation or withhold opportunity to be used. 

     As the story of Joseph’s life unfolds in scripture, it’s not an easy journey.  All of the obstacles didn’t prevent the fulfillment; it prepared him.  Only in the capsule of his heart could Joseph hold unto the promise, God’s promise.  A dream spoken into his life at the age of seventeen; it wasn’t fulfilled until he was a man.  As the dream started his life’s journey; the understanding came from a personal relationship with God.  What brought Joseph out of jail?  It wasn’t the dream but the ability to interpret dreams, a gift from hearing God’s voice. 

     Joseph had to develop his relationship with God; it’s what brought his deliverance.  So, remain faithful in your devotion to God.  Our God never sleeps or ignores the details of our lives; He is acquainted with them all.

“Yet what is due me is in the Lord's hand, and my reward is with my God."~Isaiah 49:4