How to Push Through the Weariness of Prayer
By Lynette Kittle
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” – Galatians 6:9
Each morning, my husband and I pray together for each other, family members, neighbors, friends, acquaintances, leaders, world issues, and more, depending on how God is leading us.
While praying for some individuals and situations for years, at times, it can seem like we are just going through a list, day-after-day, year-after-year. Yet we keep at it, knowing God hears, listens, and answers prayer. As Psalm 66:19 assures us, “But God has surely listened and has heard my prayer.”
Pushing Through the Hard Times in Prayer
When prayers for someone or a situation seem to go on endlessly, the enemy often tries to discourage us from praying, urging us to give up and causing us to believe God isn’t going to answer or doesn’t want to answer our pleas.
As well, it seems like the more we pray for an individual or situation, the worse it gets, like it’s headed in a completely different direction than we’re praying for. During this time, it can seem like our efforts are in vain, yet we know that 1 Thessalonians 5:17 urges us to “Pray continually.”
When praying seems hard at times, we can look to Daniel in the Bible, who knew how to keep pushing through difficult times of prayer. As Daniel 9:3 describes, “So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with Him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.”
What’s Happening When Answers Aren’t Coming Through?
Often, we don’t understand what’s holding up answers to our prayers or why we aren’t seeing God fulfill our requests. The book of Daniel offers insight into what may be keeping our answers at bay.
Daniel had a troubling vision that led him to some serious praying, yet it seemed that with all his efforts, he wasn’t receiving an answer. Not understanding why he wasn’t receiving answers, God sent Gabriel to give Daniel insight and understanding (Daniel 9:22), saying, “As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision” (Daniel 9:23).
Then, later on, seeking answers again after three weeks of mourning (Daniel 10:2-3), Daniel experienced another divine encounter. “I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist. His body was like topaz, His face like lightning, His eyes like flaming torches, His arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and His voice like the sound of a multitude” (Daniel 10:5-6).
“He said, ‘Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.’ And when He said this to me, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come’” (Daniel 10:12-14).
Believing God Is at Work Through Our Prayers
James 5:16, emphasizes the power of prayer, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
During times of pushing through prayer, Psalm 126:5 reminds us, “Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.”
In Luke 18:1, Jesus encouraged His disciples to always pray and not give up. Like Winston Churchill urged people on October 29, 1941, his words ring true, too, when it comes to feeling discouraged and doubtful in prayer: “This is the lesson: never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never in nothing, great or small, large or petty—never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”
The devil wants us to give up and stop believing that God hears and answers our prayers. But 1 John 5:15 urges us to hold on: “And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him.”
We can have confidence that our prayers aren’t falling flat or fading away into nothingness. Like Revelation 5:8 reveals, our prayers are preserved and still at work long after they are spoken. “And when He had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.”
Intersecting Faith & Life:
Are you feeling worn down and weary praying? If so, ask God to strengthen you to keep praying and to never give up.
Further Reading:
4 Ways to Pray about Anything
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/imtmphoto
Lynette Kittle is married with four daughters. She enjoys writing about faith, marriage, parenting, relationships, and life. Her writing has been published by Focus on the Family, Decision, Today’s Christian Woman, kirkcameron.com, Ungrind.org, StartMarriageRight.com, and more. She has a M.A. in Communication from Regent University and serves as associate producer for Soul Check TV.
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