In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells the story of a man who would not lend bread to his friend who needed it, and his reasoning was that it was midnight. He said, “the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed” (Lk 11:7 NAB).
Christ then goes on to say, about the man, that “if he does get up to give him the loaves because of their friendship, he will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence. And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Lk 11:8-9). This right here is Christ urging us to not give up on prayer if we do not get the answer we desire.
The man eventually will give the bread because his friend won’t stop asking. This is how we must treat prayer. If God does not give us what we want immediately, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t want prosperity for us; rather, he gives us a chance to stay faithful to him and trust even when we don’t receive gratification right away.
God always gives one of three answers to our prayers - it is either “yes,” “no,” or “not yet.” If God knows that what we are asking for is meant for us, then when we trust him to give it to us, we will receive it. If he knows that it’s not good for us, then he won’t give it to us. If he knows it’s right, but maybe we aren’t ready for it (or we don’t fully trust him yet), he may say “not yet” so that he can better prepare us to receive his blessings. He promises, above all else, to give his Spirit to us when we ask (Lk 11:13).
When we don’t feel close to God, that doesn’t mean he’s not there. He wants to reach our innermost being; we just have to completely surrender to and trust in his love.
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Amen, thank you for this reflection!!!