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Perseverance in Prayer 

Ex 17:8-13; Ps 120; 2 Tim 3:14-4:2; Lk 18:1-8

Like Moses, who raised his arm in unceasing prayer of intercession to God for his people, Christ’s arms are constantly open in prayer on the cross in intercession for us, the members of his new covenant. Today, the Church calls us to join Christ in this unceasing prayer. 

In the first reading, God showed the Israelites that He is responsible for their life, history, and circumstances. Their success depended entirely on Him. Moses, the great prophet and intercessor, did what he did best: intercede unceasingly for his people. As long as Moses’ hands were raised to God in prayer, the Israelite soldiers were victorious in battle. This reading reminds us that our victory in life depends on God; that the solution to our daily battles and struggles has both a physical and spiritual dimension. If we forget God in our daily struggles and rely only on the arm of our flesh, we will achieve nothing. So, we must be steadfast in prayer while doing what we have to do. In other words, pray and act.

In all circumstances of life, we must constantly be in God’s presence with our minds and hearts lifted up to Him in prayer. Like Moses and the psalmist, if we continue to lift up our hands and eyes to God in prayer, ‘Our help will come from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.’ This is because He never fails. We’ve got a very beautiful prayer in the Psalm today. Psalm 120.

In the second reading, Paul reminds us of the importance of Scripture in our Christian journey of faith. As the inspired word of God, Scripture must be the guiding principle of our daily lives and, of course, our prayer life. Therefore, we must remain faithful to God in continuous prayer. We must also learn to meditate on His word. In light of today’s general theme, lectio divina becomes very important. We must pray with the word of God and let it enlighten our minds. Through constant and prayerful study of God’s inspired word, we find the faith necessary to preserve God’s presence in prayer.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus emphasizes the importance of continuous prayer. Luke writes: ‘He told his disciples a parable about the need to pray continually without losing heart.’ Through his parable, Jesus teaches us to be consistent and persevere in prayer at all times. Of course, having been a man of prayer, he knew the importance of prayer for his disciples. It will be the key to the success in their mission and their fidelity. The same goes for all of us Christians. If we truly want to succeed, we must make prayer the foundation of our Christian life. It is an indispensable tool that every Christian need. The prayer in question here is one that never gives up and seeks strength from the word of God. Finally, we must never grow tired of praying because God is never tired of listening to us. He may take time to open the door, like the judge in today’s parable. However, if we do not tire of praying, God will not tire of listening to us.