Gospel Commentary: Hang-in-there Prayer

By Fr. Jack Peterson
Herald Columnist
(From the issue of 10/14/04)

One of the more universal human experiences is turning to God in prayer, begging for a certain blessing, not getting what we asked for, giving up on the request and ending up rather frustrated with God. Jesus addresses this universal struggle with the parable of the persistent widow and challenges us to persevere with our intercessory prayer. In fact, Luke begins this passage with a rather direct introduction: "Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary" (18:1).

Is God stubborn? Does He sleep on the job? Does He forget about us until we become the squeaky wheel? Does He like us to come and grovel at his feet? No! Not at all. Persevering in prayer does not change God. It changes us.

When we are forced by the trials of life to persevere in prayer, we logically spend more time in his holy presence. This is a good thing. When life is going smoothly and we have no great needs, we often look away, get distracted, become comfortable and lose sight of who God is. When trials come for us or our loved ones and we turn to God, seeking His blessings and comfort, then we receive the benefit of having spent more time with our eyes fixed on Jesus.

Persevering in prayer keeps us humble. God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is Lord of heaven and earth. Although we have been given the gift of sharing in the very life of the triune God and being made in his image and likeness, we are mere creatures. To persevere in prayer is to realize that we stand before Him as an infant before its mother and father, needing the nourishment, love, protection and guidance that only He can give. Prayer has a way of allowing me to see ever more clearly how much I depend upon the Lord for every good thing that I need in this life.

God’s plan is that our perseverance in prayer molds and shapes our hearts so that in time we begin to love with the heart of Christ. Our hearts are often hardened by our sins and the sins of others. By regularly coming into God’s presence and seeking His help, the Lord softens our hearts. We learn patience. We become more sensitive to the sufferings of others. We begin to focus more on the needs of those around us than on our own.

Finally, persevering in prayer invites us to enter into the mystery of entrusting our lives completely to the will of the Father. Jesus himself begged the Father in the garden of Gethsemene three times to take away the cup of suffering. All Christian prayer, in imitation of Jesus, ends with re-commitment to desire and accept the will of the Father. Such prayer deepens our faith.

When Christians persevere in prayer, they may very well end up with what they asked for. But that is not what is most important. Most importantly, they end up spending time seeking the face of Jesus, growing in humility, finding their hearts shaped by the Sacred Heart of Jesus and entrusting their lives more completely to the will of our Heavenly Father. This is why "Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary."

Fr. Peterson is campus minister at Marymount University and director of the Youth Apostles Institute.

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