“Still Knocking”

Jesus told a parable that is recorded in Luke 11 about a guy who went to a friend’s house at midnight needing bread. He knocked on the door and awakened his friend. He told him that unexpected company had arrived late and they did not have any bread for them. “May I borrow some bread from you?” And the friend, who did not even get out of the bed, replied, “Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night and we are all in bed. I can’t help you this time.”

And Jesus said that the guy at the door thought about it for a moment and then . . . he knocked on the door again. And again. And again. And again. And again until the friend finally got up and gave him what he wanted.

This parable was a direct answer to the disciples’ request, “Lord, teach us to pray.” So Jesus said that prayer is like irritating a friend until he gives you what you want. In other words, God often acts like He doesn’t really care about your needs and does not answer the door until you become repulsively bothersome. When He gets sick and tired of you banging on Heaven’s door, then He will say, “OK! Enough already. Geesh, what do you want?” That’s prayer.
(& if you don’t believe me, read Jesus’ parable in Luke 18 about the persistent widow who did the same thing to a village official. It’s a similar situation with different faces.)

This story has taken on new meaning for me in recent days. This past summer I completed three years of praying for a specific request and today, would you guess what happened? Nothing happened. I am still knocking at the door. Following Jesus’ storyline, I think that perhaps God has just gotten out of the bed and is headed to the breadbox. But He’s not there yet. I am unsure how long it will take Him to get from the kitchen to the door. And so I am standing here at the door with the same need after three years - still knocking.