Importunately

“Pray the largest prayers. You cannot think a prayer so large that God, in answering it, will not wish you had made it larger. Pray not for crutches but for wings.”

- Phillips Brooks

“Never stop praying.”

- The Apostle Paul, 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Growing up having memorized The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13, it was only natural for prayer to have a sense of formality to it, as if there were certain words I was to use and a format I should follow.

Or, it was saying the rote prayer at dinnertime, “God is great, God is good, let us thank Him for our food. By His hands we all are fed, give us Lord our daily bread.” Prayer could simply become a ritual before getting to eat.

Or, at bedtime, when we would pray, “Now I lay me down to sleep; I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die, before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” This prayer is actually pretty morbid for a child. Who wants to go to bed thinking about dying while you sleep?

Prayer is not a formality, nor is it a ritual. Praying is having a conversation with God like you would with your father or closest friend. It is raw, authentic and transparent.

In Luke 11, we read that we are to pray with a shameless audacity. Several years ago, when I studied this more in depth, I came across a new word for me at the time: Importunate. It is defined as “persistent, especially to the point of annoyance or intrusion.” This is the way God wants us to pray! Not a formal prayer at dinner or bedtime, but a constant prayer for what we want from Him, our Father and our friend.

We are to be ruthless and even rude in the way we come to Him, then trust Him for His answer and His timing, never letting it slow us down from making our requests known to Him.

As Thomas Watson once wrote, “Prayer delights God’s ear; it melts His heart; and opens His hand. God cannot deny a praying soul.”

So, keep on praying… importunately!

Pastor Ken

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