Day 106
Joshua 13:1‐14:15; Luke 18:1‐17; Psalm 85:1‐13; Proverbs 13:7‐8
Don’t Give Up Hope
This reading from Luke exposes a judge who is not predisposed to justice and neither feared God nor respected man. The widow was the symbol of the poor and defenseless. It was only through her persistence that this godless judge granted her petition, not through conscience but in order to silence her “nagging.”
Jesus uses this parable to let the people know that if an unjust judge can be badgered into giving this widow justice so to silence her, so much more is the loving Father willing to listen to His children and grant their petitions. But there is also another message we need to consider: What we ask for may not be in our best interest. God always answers prayers but not always to our liking.
Even Garth Brooks, the country singer, sang about unanswered prayer. We who have children or recall our own youth should remember that haunting refrain, “Daddy, (or Mommy), please!!” The persistence of a child can be both frustrating and tearfully painful. As parents we don’t want to deny our children, but we often know that what they are asking is not in their best interest.
Only the Father knows what’s going to happen in our future, and He knows what’s best for us. We must never be discouraged if our prayers don’t seem to be answered, but we must continue, with persistence, to pray. We will never grow tired or discouraged in our petitions if we remember to end them with, “Thy Will be done!”
Rev. Ed Bartle