The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
James 5:16 NKJV
Augustine’s mother, Monica, was a devout Christian, but her son was an undisciplined child. Even despite Monica’s constant warnings to stay away from fornication, Augustine found himself father to a son and a member of a cult.
Years later, she begged him not to travel to Rome, but despite her advice, he went. She was able to persuade him to listen to the bishop. The words of the sermon lingered as he sat in a nearby garden. A child’s song, “Take Up and Read,” drew him to the Bible, and Saint Augustine was converted that moment.
Monica could have given up on her wayward son. But she was never willing to accept Augustine as he was in his state of godlessness. She kept praying until she got results.
Jesus tells us to pray relentlessly, like a man who knocks on his neighbor’s door in the middle of the night for bread. He said, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Luke 11:9–10 NIV).
Don’t give up on your prayers. The answer is closer than you know.
Lord, there are many burdens that have gone unanswered, but I know nothing is impossible with You. Give me the strength to come to You daily. Amen.
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Today’s reading was adapted from Daily Wisdom for Women: 2017 Devotional Collection with permission from Barbour Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reading was written by Sabrina McDonald.