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There are times we are discouraged or tired and need a break.

Jesus understands this and periodically takes His disciples into seclusion to rest physically, emotionally and spiritually. Other times we reach a breaking point and just quit and walk away. In John 6, many of the disciples do this. The word faint is used to describe this state of “losing heart” or “losing hope,” and is when Christians quit and never return to their tasks.

In Luke 18:1, Jesus speaks on the subject of prayer saying, “…that men ought always to pray and not to faint.”

If our request is based on what we want, then we will lose hope when it is denied. We quit when our sheer will is not enough for us to continue. When the Lord gives us a burden to pray for a special need, He also sustains us through it.

Do not stop praying, but do stop trying to manipulate God. We should not tell the Lord to listen, because we are speaking. We are, however, to listen when He is speaking. Prayer is not changing God’s answer as much as changing our request.

Praying originates with God when a burden is pressed upon our heart giving us a desire and the strength to ask until the answer comes. When we pray in Jesus’ name, it is for His glory, not ours. Praying according to His will is Him leading us to want what He wants. It is the Lord answering His requests as we ask of Him.

Please do not lose heart when there seems to be no answer. This may be the Lord telling us to wait. The request may be right, but not the timing. If we are not ready, it could result in failure and feelings of being overwhelmed.

It may be that the object of our prayers is not ready and we must wait on their timing as well. He leads us to pray His prayers as He leads others to receive them. How many times do we know what someone needs in their life, yet like us, they will not listen. When counseling people, it is not telling them the answer as much as them discovering it for themselves. We can tell people what they need to do, but it is not until they want to do it that it will happen. It takes time for the Lord to coordinate us to pray for His requests and also for those to receive it.

Praying is difficult for us because we are impatient. The Lord has had all of eternity past to work out the details of His will. Praying is as much trusting the Lord as it is asking Him. Please do not quit praying, and let the Lord finish what He has started in us and in others. The recipients of our prayers are as amazed as we are by what the Lord is doing.

REV. STEVE CONWELL, pastor of Maranatha Baptist Church is heard mornings on WFLO and WVHL in “A Thought For Today.” He can be reached at SteveConwell@outlook.com.