Listen

He also said to them, “Imagine that one of you has a friend and you go to that friend in the middle of the night. Imagine saying, ‘Friend, loan me three loaves of bread because a friend of mine on a journey has arrived and I have nothing to set before him.’ Imagine further that he answers from within the house, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up to give you anything.’ I assure you, even if he wouldn’t get up and help because of his friendship, he will get up and give his friend whatever he needs because of his friend’s brashness.”

Luke 11:5-8

Think

This is a story about desperation, and Jesus tells this story to teach us how to pray. Jesus has just taught his disciples what to pray (Luke 11:1–4), and now he helps them see that when we pray, we should pray with feeling!

The story Jesus tells is about a friend who is trying to live up to the expectations of a good host. He’s had some surprise guests show up and has nothing to feed them — how embarrassing! He can’t let his guests down! So he runs to another friend’s house and asks for bread, over and over, even though his friend’s family is already in bed. Eventually, the desperation of the host causes his friend to get out of bed and give him some bread for his guests.

The point of the story isn’t that God is reluctant to help us when we ask. Instead, Jesus is trying to teach us that we should be persistent in praying, just like the desperate host. We need something from God. So keep asking!

Rebecca Poe Hays

Pray

Holy God, I need you like I need food, and water, and air!

Help me know I need you!

In the name of Jesus who teaches me to pray, amen.

Go

Just keep praying — just keep PRAYING!