Keeping On

Keeping On

The Persistent Widow

Read: Luke 18:1-8

It’s about time! I thought, as I read the letter. Four months earlier, I had noticed an error on our bill. I explained the situation to someone in the clinic’s billing department, who assured me that it would be taken care of. I did the same thing the next month. The month after that, I spent an hour on the phone as our insurance company shuffled me from person to person. Eventually, I wrote a letter to the clinic and included copies of the bills and any related papers I could find. Finally, my persistence paid off.

Jesus told a parable about a persistent widow who refused to give up her pursuit of justice. Time after time, the woman came before a judge to ask for a settlement of her case against an enemy. Each time, the uncaring judge ignored her request. How often did the woman feel tempted to give up her hope for justice? Yet she kept taking her case to the judge in spite of her disappointment until she finally wore him down. Eventually, the judge resolved her case just so she would quit nagging him.

The widow’s story encourages us to persevere in prayer even when we feel like giving up. In contrast to the uncaring judge, God loves us deeply. When it seems that he is ignoring our requests, he has a reason. God promises to answer our prayers in his own time and way, as long as we’re in a right relationship with him, our requests line up with his will, and we believe that he will answer when we pray. Sometimes I persevere more in worldly problems, such as a billing error, than I do in prayer. The story of the persistent widow reminds me that God always welcomes prayers offered by his children in faith, and he delights in answering them in the best way possible.

[Jesus said,] “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.”

Matthew 7:7