Perseverance in Prayer

grace6390
Sep 9
4 min read

Written by Caleb Thomas

“for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith”

Galatians 3:26 (ESV)

Apart from several cross-country moves which I now look back on with gratitude, I remember my childhood with fondness. I had everything a boy could’ve wanted. My days were spent in good schools, with good friends, enjoying hobbies that were good for me. My parents loved me and my brother well and we formed strong bonds with people at church who, throughout our relocations, persisted as the deepest friends.

My mother was the one who spent the most time with us as she managed the home. My father was the one who was often gone working to support the family as an engineer. Far from being absent, he was always at the dinner table and was very involved in the sports we played.

As I got older and entered the phase of teenage life where you think you have all the answers, I disengaged from my family and spent more of my days entertaining myself. It was around this time that my dad became an alcoholic.

My dad has been struggling with alcohol ever since, and for roughly the last 12 years, our relationship has been strained. As an adult, I’ve been more distant from my family and with the help of my wife and several counselors, have come to acknowledge and mourn the diminishing of our relationship. Years of dishonesty, broken boundaries, and failed attempts at recovery have created distance between my dad and me. In essence, my dad has been gone since I was a teenager.

Many of us have prayers we repeat night after night, lifted up to an invisible God, that have come to feel obligatory, stale, or empty. I’ve rehearsed my prayer well. It goes: “and God, be with my family. Help my dad live sober and restore our relationship”.

Whether it’s prayers over addiction, illness, justice, salvation, or whatever other burden lay on our heart, there are times we grow numb to the emotion behind our words. Sometimes we do this because it’s just easier to say the words, say amen, and move on. We can’t bear the thought of breaking down, weeping, then having to piece ourselves back together. Other times, we refuse even to come to God in prayer, holding the pain of unresolved struggle in our hearts like precious polaroids hidden from the sun.

Over time, many of us fail to believe that God has power over sin. After all, what’s changed since our prayers began? What reason do I have to hope that my dad will get better? Is this ever truly going to end?

Such are the lies we repeat in our minds. Done often enough, we begin to forget aspects of God’s character. Our own life experience has taken the spotlight away from the truth of God’s word where it is written:

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’ The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Lamentations 3:22-26 (NIV)

In our suffering, God is compassionate. We read of his mercy throughout scripture, but especially in the psalms of lament where we see others just like us, crying out to God. Among the examples we see of lament in the bible, crucially, we also see recognition of God’s sovereignty and love for his people. At the end of Psalm 13, after crying out to God, we see David say:

“But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.”

Psalm 13:5-6 (ESV)

In our pain, we are still called to trust in and rejoice in the Lord. Sometimes this is done reluctantly, or while tears stream down. Jesus himself exemplified this anguish when he prayed to his father on the mount of Gethsemane.

Some of the most profound worship experiences I’ve had have been during the fallout of pain. When we choose to cry out to the Lord as we proclaim his goodness and faithfulness, we live out what the bible shows true worship to be. The Old Testament word used for “worship”, shachah, literally means “to bow down” or “prostrate oneself before a king”. When we sing to God, we proclaim his truths in all seasons of life, bowing down before him. God knew that we would experience times of immense pain and worship is one of the ways he gave to help us endure our hardships.

Now as a man with a family and home of my own, I’ve found myself longing for a relationship with my dad again. I continue to pray for recovery and reconciliation, and at different times have received gifts from God in the form of quality time and conversations with my dad. I go through seasons of feeling hopelessness and seasons of encouragement. By his grace, my dad will embrace lifelong sobriety, and our relationship will be restored. Whatever the outcome may be, I know my refuge comes from the Lord and my hope is in him alone. In the interim, through prayer and worship I seek the Lord to help me persevere.

“Those who sow in tears will reap with shouts of joy.”

Psalm 126:5 (CSB)

(As I’ve been contemplating my struggle, these songs have brought me peace and helped me to worship. I hope they may have the same effect for you.)

Your Love is Strong - Jon Foreman

The House of God Forever - Jon Foreman

Shout to the Lord/God of Wonders - Caleb and Kelsey

Psalm 126 - Bifrost Arts

Steadfast - Sandra McCracken

New Wine - Hillsong Worship