Mark 5:25-28:²⁵ Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, ²⁶ and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. ²⁷ When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. ²⁸ For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.” (NKJV) 

Luke 18:1-3: Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. ² He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. ³ And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against myadversary.’ (NIV)

Lord, I’m sitting here ready to talk to You.  The house is quiet.  My coffee cup is full.  I can feel You sitting with me.  Yet I don’t know what to say.  I have been praying this same prayer for a long time.  I feel as if I say the same thing over and over and over again, but I don’t feel an answer (not even that dreaded word “wait”).  How long do I persist?  How long before I just give up?  Then I think of all the mundane housework chores that I do over and over and over.  I don’t give up dusting or vacuuming or laundry or even cleaning the bathroom, but I’m thinking of giving up on God!!!  Lord, I think of the woman who touched Your robe to be healed. We read that scripture so often without even a thought as to her efforts.  She was trying to get through a wall of people.  She was weak and sick and the crowd was strong and mighty, but she tried over and over and over to get close enough to just touch Your robe.  She didn’t give up.  Lord, I think of Your parable of the woman who went before the judge over and over and over again.  She was a woman in a man’s world going up against a judge who dismissed her, but she went to him over and over and over.   Lord, You tell us in Luke to always pray and never give up.  I know that I need that kind of faith.  I know that I need the kind of faith that doesn’t give up, the kind of faith that doesn’t stop, the kind of faith that continues to pray.  Lord, please forgive me for putting You on my time limit.  Thank You, Lord, for listening to me over and over and over!