Persistence in Prayer 3-15-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be the heart of my prayer, the center of my thoughts, and the foundation of my day. ... Three years ago my Grandmother lost the wedding ring Papa gave her over sixty years ago. Nanny was heartsick and couldn't quite bring herself to just let it go. She must have been like the woman who kept coming to the judge for justice or the friend who kept banging on the door for bread in the middle of the night in the parables You taught on persistence in prayer. You must have put it on her heart to pray through to victory. She was digging holes to plant tulips for Easter in her little flower garden when her garden tool hit something hard deep down in the dirt. There it was -- her pearl of great price! You gave her the desires of her heart. The delay in the answer to prayer only made her grow more determined to persevere. The value of her treasure only made her shout of praise that much louder. I had to pull the phone back from my ear while her eighty-seven year old lungs filled that little west Texas town with shouts of praise and hallelujahs to You. The prayer of perseverance is like the prayer You put on the hearts of the watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem: "Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted sentinels; all day and all night they will never be silent. You who remind the Lord, take no rest, and give Him no rest until He establishes Jerusalem and makes it renowned throughout all the earth" (Isaiah 62.6-7). Lord, give us grace to know the prayers You are putting on our heart that we are to pray through to victory. Teach us how to persevere until we see the victory or You lift the burden. And thank You for answering Nanny's prayer. How you must have delighted in her celebration of thanksgiving and how You have touched the hearts of all who can't help but hear her shouts of praise! In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!