Why Be Faithful in Prayer?

George Watson, in his book A Pot of Oil, says the will, more than any other part of our nature, expresses the depth of our character in the sight of God. When prayer seems dry and we can't concentrate, we must deliberately choose--set our will--to pray anyway. Such praying may seem very unsatisfactory to us, but it is very pleasing to God. He knows that our prayers are rising from a deep determination. 

In fact, much of our true spiritual development come during the dry and hard times.

When I was a little girl, one of the good men in our church testified that he had had a dry spell in his praying. He kept going to his regular prayer time, but nothing seemed to happen. Then one day, once again God's presence was there, and it was as though God said to him, "I saw all of those times you were faithful. I heard you even when you had no spirit of prayer."

Cornelius prayed faithfully, and he often may have seemed to be only saying repetitious words. But one day God sent an angel to give him this message: "Your prayers...have come up as a remembrance before God" (Acts 10:1-4). God remembered all those faithful prayers, even those prayed more out of routine and duty than inspiration. 

"You armed me with strength for battle," King David prayed in one of his final prayers (II Samuel 22:40). Some days we don't have strength for prayer--the will power, the strong desire that enables us to keep our minds on petitioning. So we can take heart to learn that even David had to pray not only for victory in battle but also for the strength to enter it. 

Dear Lord, help us to be "followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises" (Hebrews 6:12).

"A faithful man shall abound with blessings" (Proverbs 28:20).