“…he will get up to give him whatever
he needs because of his persistence.”
– Luke 11:8
You know that proverb “The squeaky wheel gets the grease”? Well, that’s how I am with the Lord sometimes. When I am on frustration overload due to an oft-repeated unanswered prayer, or super-stressed because of a problem that needs an immediate solution or going through a particularly painful episode with some ailment or other, I turn into a squeaky wheel. I picture myself as a terrible toddler throwing a tantrum in front of the Lord. “Thy will be done” gets thrown out of the window. Do you do that sometimes?
In yesterday’s mass, Fr. James Gascon, SJ, had these elements to impart about prayer and persistence:
"The Gospel speaks about the
person who prays. The Lord reminds them to be persistent. Sa kakulitan
they get what they get. Jesus reminds His disciples to never give up.
It is a reminder to whom we pray – the father is a good father who will give us whatever we ask in persistence. However, the difficult question is: if the father knows everything why do we have to keep asking/repeating?
So, pray until something happens. What “happens” may not always be what we want but what we need. It may be a need for us to act on our problem.
OR, as has happened in my case several times, the Lord gives in to my kakulitan. I remember my LG head Myrna once told me in our chat, “Help me pray. Malakas ka naman kay Lord.” I replied, “Makulit lang.”
So, whatever may be the fruit of our prayers, let’s persist
because God will give the best.