Thomas Edison, a famous and prolific American  inventor, is accredited the famous quote that success is, “One percent Inspiration and ninety nine percent perspiration!”

The idea is that however clever or creative we are, success is mostly about hard work, patience and dedication.

It appears that success is more about not giving up than anything else. So what if we adopted the same attitude when it comes to matters of faith and prayer?

All too often we lack persistence when it comes to prayer, sometimes losing faith in it altogether. We give up on prayer for lots of reasons. We give up on prayer because we have stopped believing that God is really listening. We give up on prayer because we think that we are unworthy of God’s attention, or that God must be busy doing other things. We give up on prayer because we have an immature expectation, and can’t understand why God doesn’t pander to it. Whatever reason we have for giving up on prayer we need to re-think, because at worst, giving up on prayer can mean giving up on our relationship with God.

Today Jesus urges us to persist in prayer.  However disillusioned we might feel, we are urged not to give up. Just because God hasn’t granted a prayer in the past doesn’t mean God won’t grant a future prayer. The key is to remember that God isn’t a magician  giving us quick fix answers whenever we’re feeling at a loss. God sees the overall picture, and as long as our prayer fits that picture how much more readily will he answer us, than the unjust judge gives in to the widow in today’s parable.

We are encouraged to pray with a genuine desire to build our relationship with God. We are encouraged to pray with persistence.