Pray and Don't Give Up

Luke 18: 1 - 8 (NIV): Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.' "For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off ? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

This is a rare parable in the Bible because Luke tells us what it's about before Jesus tells it. Perhaps this is because God really wants to make sure we understand this one. God would rather you pray than anything else. You were created to have a relationship with him and prayer is how you do it.
Too many times we pray once or twice, then give up if we don't feel we have our answer. Jesus told this story to show us that we must never give up. Keep praying until you are satisfied with the answer. If that is after the day you die, then so be it. Why is it so important that we keep praying about something? Because the only reason we would keep asking God is if we believed he was going to answer. This is what having faith is all about. We give up so quickly because we don't believe he really will.
I firmly believe that God allows situations in our lives for the sole purpose of keeping us in prayer. He wants us to depend on him instead of ourselves and we might as well get used to it. But don't worry, it's a good thing to trust in God. Remember, he loves us beyond what we can fathom, he knows what's truly best for us, and he spoke all of creation into existence.
If you are praying about something and feel you need a boost of power or faith, try adding fasting to your prayer. Fasting humbles us before God and shows him that we are serious. The hunger pains remind us to pray and allow us to sacrifice, identifying with Christ.
So keep praying and never give up. Show God that you believe in what he says. This pleases him. And like the widow in our story, keep asking until you get your answer.