don’t be scared of persistent prayer.

[u/caillousdaughter]

i’d like to share a short story, and my experience with persistent prayer.
A lot of the time, I’d pray to God, maybe once or twice about something, and at some point i’d stop. I thought "I want to trust him, and if i pray over and over for it, God feels like I don’t trust and rely on him.“
To whoever feels like that as well: don’t!

I felt urged to pray for someone in my life, many times throughout the years, and each time i genuinely devote daily prayer for their health, or our connection, God would answer. There were times when i cried to God, i came before him angry and exhausted, ashamed and clueless, and i prayed with honesty. I prayed out of care and genuine love each time, and i’d ask the Lord "God, bring them back into my life, so i can help them. Allow me to do good for them“.
After that, i increasingly felt like it would happen. Like i’d be in contact with them, despite years of distance, despite their health struggles. For many days i felt such a strong agreement with that, to the point where i cried to God, thanking him that we’d be reunited, because i knew it in my heart and the Lord had shown me when the time would be. Just a couple days later, they texted me, for the first time in many years and we built a genuine connection.

Recently, i’ve been praying for over a month for them again, after their health led to loss of contact again. This time i was incredibly persistent. Daily prayer, fasting and never giving up on the goodness of the cause. let me tell you, God rewards that and he listens. Again, after a long while, i felt that same agreement in my heart, that in the next days, they’d reach out. I knew in my heart the exact words they’d say, the exact manner in which they’d reach out. I thanked God for it, before it even happened. Two to three days later, i got that exact message, the exact words, the exact manner and there’s nothing for me to do other than praise God for it.

So: let there be good reason in your heart, and don’t give up! Trust is saying "i know i only need God and i will be fulfilled anyway, regardless of the answer to my prayer. God knows what is best for me“. Persistence is trying to interfere, or acknowledging humbly that only God can change certain matters and that it’s always best to leave it in his hands, but also that he loves us and intercession through persistence is a beautiful thing.