Have you ever seen that clip from the "Family Guy" where Stewie is standing next to his Mom's bed and...well...here...just check it out. It's hilarious.
That clip makes me laugh every time without fail.
Stewie is a pest. He annoys his mother. She remains silent. Ever feel that way about God? You "make your requests known" to Him once, you do it again, and you even pray a third time (imagine that) - crickets...God appears to be silent. Soon enough you're left wondering...your faith is left fading...your certainty that He even really exists teeters. What's that about? Do we annoy God with our incessant prayers? The reality is simple:
GOD WANTS US TO BE PASSIONATELY PERSISTENT.
I see it time and time again. In Luke 18, Jesus wraps up a well known parable with a powerful question: "When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" The context of that questions deals with the issue of our faithful, passionate, persistent prayer. In the parable, Christ speaks of a widow who wears down an "unjust judge" with her persistent plea to the point that he eventually grants her request. Jesus says, "Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to His chosen people who cry out to Him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?" An awesome promise, but what's He waiting for??
It's about faith. Imagine that. Our faith can move the heart of God...move Him to move...to act...to answer. That's an awesome thought, isn't it? Our faith can move God. It's been done. Man has moved the heart of God by faith. Remember when that centurion sought to have Jesus come heal his servant in Mathew 8? I love this..."When Jesus heard [of the centurion's faith], He was astonished". The One who spoke the heavens into place; the One who hand crafted the earth and everything in it...was astonished by a man. What was it that moved Jesus' heart? That astonished the creator? It was faith. Real faith. The certainty of things unseen.
I digress, a little. What I'm trying to say is that in the end, God's desire for us to be persistent is not some narcissistic desire to see us beg. He desires for us to know the fullness of what it means to trust Him. To know the joy and freedom that comes from a life wholly devoted to Him. A life lived by faith that powers victory - that moves Him to move.
Would we be willing to pray with passion in faith...to pray with persistence...to be a "pest"? To say:
GOD, I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL YOU MOVE!
What will it take for us to finally believe that He is able to do with ease the things we think impossible? What will it take for us to finally be a people of faith?
"And we are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him. And since we know He hears us when we make our requests, we also know that He will give us what we ask for." [1 John 5:14-15] We can come before Him with boldness. He loves us. We don't need to cower behind a rock anymore as we approach our Father. We can reach for Him in desperation...in faith that He WILL move.
In Psalm 88, in the midst of the deepest despair, the psalmist says "Lord, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day". In a nutshell, I will not stop until you move.
Would God be astonished by our faith?
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