How Should We Pray if We Don't Get an Answer Right Away? - Luke 11

I have often heard people say something to the effect of, "God has a lot of more important matters to worry about than my insignicant problems."  They assume because what they are asking for isn't of epic proportions that it is not as important to God.  Luke 11 begins with by Jesus teaching the disciples the Lord's Prayer.  Then he offers more teaching about the nature of prayer.  We start in verse 5 when Jesus says, 

"Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though the will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need. 9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for[f] a fish, will give him  a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

This is somewhat of an odd teaching Jesus gives as a follow up to his teaching the disciples about the Lord's prayer.  In Jesus' day usually the whole family slept in one big room and the animals slept on the side of the house.  Therefore to knock on someone's door in the middle of the night would have woken up the whole house.  So why does Jesus use this example?

It took a lot of boldness for this man to do this.  It is not often that you go to your neighbor's house in the middle of the night.  But the man needed bread.  He needed to feed his family and was willing to risk embarassment to go out late at night and to ask his neighbor for bread. I believe Jesus is teaching us here to pray boldly. 

Jesus also teaches the disciples to pray persistently.  He says, "Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be open to you."  Notice how active prayer is.  Prayer is not passive, but seeking out of God and continuously as we ask, seek and knock until he answers.  

One commentator writes, 

"God often waits for our passionate persistence in prayer. It isn’t that God is reluctant and needs to be persuaded. Our persistence doesn’t change God; it changes us, developing in us a heart and passion for what God wants." (Guzik)

Unanswered prayer is always a challenging subject, but we know that God is our Heavenly Father.  When we ask for something he doesn't give us something we don't need.  When we ask for a fish, he doesn't give us a snake.  Importantly this passage promises us that when we pray Jesus always gives us the Holy Spirit.  Luke's version is the only version to include this teaching.

It is the Holy Spirit who prays through us and gives us boldness and persistence.  Matthew 26:41 says, "the Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak."  The Holy Spirit fuels our prayer life and beckons us to continue to ask, seek and knock.  And no matter what the Holy Spirit gives us the strength to persevere even when we don't see our prayer answered right away.  

During this time of anxiety and fear with the corona virus crisis, let us be bold and persistant in our prayers.  It is the Holy Spirit that will give us the strength we need to be a shining light in the world right now.  God the Father loves to give His children gifts when they ask for them, and the greatest gift is the gift of His presence through the Spirit of Christ.  Come Holy Spirit fill us with your life giving power and grace.  Amen.