When I decided to write something about persistent prayer, I did a Google search to see what images I could find. In the process, I found various websites devoted to discussing and defining persistent prayer: how to do it, why to do it, and the benefits of practicing it. I noticed the lack of mention of how much time is meant by persistence.

That kind of time is difficult today in our Western Civilization lifestyles. We want the benefits of a consistent and devoted prayer time. But it’s lucky if we can set aside fifteen minutes to pray. Many of us go through seasons where we manage to discipline ourselves to do a regular daily devotion. Some Bible reading, maybe using a commentary, and working our way through the prayer list. Most of these issues center on personal matters, such as children, spouse, or work. If we are really devoted, maybe we pray for our pastors.

Suppose we were challenged to describe our hour-long motivation to practice this discipline. How many of us would admit that we are counting the minutes until we can be done and move on to the next thing on the schedule — another activity to check off the daily routine?

It is hard for us in this hectic world to sacrifice the time to pray unceasingly.

There are moments in history where we find ourselves in desperate and drastic situations. In these cases, our fight or flight mechanism — if we are Christ Followers–prompts us to pray with that life or death urgency that feels like our only hope. And, perhaps that is precisely what it is. Our only hope.

As an example, the 9/11 tragedy saw thousands of people flood the churches looking for comfort and answers. Unfortunately, this only lasted a few weeks. Even desperation can be dulled by our lifestyles. Or perhaps the news cycle.

Persistence is mostly only long-lived because of desperation. In the third world, people are very familiar with desperate living situations, such as famine, disease, tribal warfare resulting in genocide, and all the other evils that exist. Plus, they are acquainted with the spiritual dimensions which infest their lands. They have no hope when the genocide begins. The tribal gods won’t save them from the bullets. They can’t save them from the evil.

There have been stories of villagers who were Christians and their village was attacked. They were being systematically massacred. Those who managed to escape ran into the swamps and stood there in neck-deep water, praying. While they were praying in the swamp, the soldiers found the swamp and walked past the villagers. In some cases, within inches of them. They escaped the carnage because God blinded the soldiers’ eyes to their presence.

So how do we who live in such comfort rationalize our lack of prayer? 

It seems like our lives are not desperate. Or are they?

Have we struggled to feel His Presence? Do we know what His voice sounds like? Have we written off the gifts of the Spirit because they’ve never happened to us? Do we ever wonder why nothing in the Bible ever happens around us? Have we stopped praying because He never answers or gives us the things on our list? Or is our excuse that that kind of thing only happens to Super-Spiritual people?

Shouldn’t that sound like desperation to us? Will we know what His voice sounds like when the end comes?

Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. (Isaiah 55:6, NKJV)

Shouldn’t we be honest with ourselves and cry out for His Presence in our moment-by-moment lives? To experience that continuous conversation with our God?

In our world, we don’t face the same kind of desperation people do in the third world or totalitarian regimes. We face the kind of desperation of losing the life Jesus meant for us, which may not be a life of safe comfort in our carefully manicured nests. Maybe it’s the adventurous life Jesus is calling us to.

We may not feel desperate. But, if you have never heard God call your name, doesn’t that hurt your feelings a tiny bit?

There is a term for the inability to recognize when you are in peril. George Otis, Jr. calls it “Obscured Jeopardy Syndrome”. In other words, it is the “frog in the pot” syndrome.

So, what is the answer to these questions? Has your life with Christ stagnated?

The only thing I suggest is Persistent Prayer. Or, in my case, Sacrificial Prayer. I didn’t have time to pray, not with three small kids and a chronically ill wife. I was stretched to the breaking point. So verses like;

Truly, truly I say to you, the one who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I am going to the Father. (John 14:12)

It challenged me to reevaluate my life. I asked myself, what was the first thing that Jesus did every day? He found a private, secluded place to talk with the Father. So I determined that if Jesus needed to do that, then so did I. So I carved out an hour in the middle of the night (3 AM) and began to pursue His face.

I had days when I could barely stay awake, but I certainly had a lot to talk about with God. And I admit I did most of the talking. But I began to get answers — personal answers. There were long periods when His Presence would settle on me, and I was afraid to move so I wouldn’t end the moment. And life began to change.

For a while, Jesus would wake me up in imaginative ways. He would mostly just call my name, usually around 3 AM. In a few cases, He tapped me on the shoulder or tugged at my covers. None of these occurrences were frightening. I sensed the Lord’s presence, obeyed, and got out of bed.

This is now a habit and a regular schedule for me. I love the time I spend in the morning with the Lord. Sometimes, it’s powerful, but mostly, it’s quiet and still. I rest in the stillness. I can recognize His voice and His jokes. I also have a good sense of confidence in the authority He has trusted me with. Prayer is a joy, and I find myself talking to Him throughout the day.

It’s no longer a sacrifice.