Prayer is a powerful factor in our relationship with God. One of the things that can happen through prayer is that God may be persuaded to relent or change His course of action. Moses demonstrated this when he prayed concerning his entrance into the Promised Land.

Moses and the Power of Prayer

Moses could not enter the Promised Land because he had made God angry. Yet Moses decided to pray. Despite his sin, he realized that his prayer life could affect God’s response.

This is important: sin should not discourage a person from praying. Even when someone has sinned, he should still come before the Lord and pray. A person may be surprised at how much God can answer when he comes to Him in prayer.

In Deuteronomy 3, Moses described how he besought the Lord:

Deuteronomy 3:23-28: “And I besought the LORD at that time, saying, O Lord GOD, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand: for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the LORD was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the LORD said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter. Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan. But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him: for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the land which thou shalt see. So we abode in the valley over against Bethpeor.”

God told Moses no. Yet even after saying no, God relented in some way. Moses was permitted to climb to the top of Pisgah and see the Promised Land with his own eyes, even though he was not permitted to enter it.

There is an even more remarkable aspect of this. When Jesus Christ was on the Mount of Transfiguration, Moses appeared there. In that sense, Moses was in the Promised Land at that time. Even when God said no, He relented in some way.

Claiming the Attributes of God

Why was Moses’ prayer so powerful?

One important principle is that Moses appealed to God’s attributes. He reminded God of who He is.

Moses said:

“O Lord GOD, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand: for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might?”

God knows His own attributes. He cannot contradict His own character.

When praying, a person can therefore appeal to what God has revealed about Himself. For example:

“Lord, You are merciful. Your Word says that Your mercy is new every morning. Please forgive my iniquity for Your mercy’s sake. Please give me another chance.”

Or:

“Lord, the Bible says that You are a gracious God, abundant in forgiveness. Your Word says that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. Please give me another chance.”

A person can remind God of His greatness, His power, His grace, and His mercy.

The reason this matters is that God appreciates when His children know Him—when they know His person and His attributes.

Desperation and Patience in Prayer

Moses was desperate. He besought the Lord because he desperately wanted his prayer answered. But desperation alone is not enough. Another key word in powerful prayer is patience.

Moses did not enter the Promised Land immediately. He had to wait. Yet ultimately, his desire to see the Promised Land was fulfilled.

Psalm 130 gives another picture of desperate prayer:

Psalm 130:1-8: “Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD. Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning. Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.”

The psalmist cried out “out of the depths.” He was desperate for God to hear his prayer. Yet notice the progression: he did not merely pray desperately; he waited.

The psalmist said:

“I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.”

He repeated the comparison with “those who watch for the morning” twice. This shows the fervency of his waiting. Fervency in prayer is not merely how intensely a person prays. Fervency also depends upon patience. A powerful prayer life requires the ability to keep praying without quitting. When a person refuses to quit, he is also refusing to quit being patient. He continues relying upon God and desperately praying to Him, claiming His attributes.

Patience Produces Fruit

James connects patience with fruit.

James 5:7-11: “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door. Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.”

Later in the same chapter, James returns to prayer and gives Elijah as an example:

James 5:15-18: “And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.”

The fruit comes through patience. James connects patience with the husbandman waiting for the precious fruit of the earth, and later connects prayer with the coming of fruit. If fruit were produced instantly, would it be as good? Fruit requires time, care, nourishment, water, and sunlight. Things that are produced quickly are not necessarily as valuable as things that have been given proper time and care.

The same principle applies to prayer. A person can have a cheap prayer life—a quick, instant-gratification prayer life in which he expects everything immediately. But by refusing to wait, he may miss the fruit that comes through patience.

Daniel: Desperation, Weakness, and God’s Strength

Daniel provides another example of persevering prayer.

Daniel 10:2-3: “In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled.”

Daniel was desperate. But desperation should not be deliberately manufactured. The reason desperation can be powerful is that it demonstrates total reliance upon God.

Imagine being trapped somewhere with no way of escaping. You try everything, but nothing works. Eventually, there is only one thing left to rely upon: God. The mind becomes focused on one thing: “God, please help me.”

That is why desperation can make prayer powerful. It demonstrates who the person is relying upon. Daniel himself reached a point of weakness:

Daniel 10:8-10: “Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength. Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground. And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.”

Daniel had no strength left, yet God strengthened him. This is why, when a person is struggling to pray patiently, he should seek God’s strength. If God wants His child to persevere in prayer, He will provide the strength necessary to continue.

Hearing God Through His Word

When Daniel heard God’s voice, the point is not that he heard some strange audible voice. God speaks through His Word.

The Word of God is where a believer hears God’s voice. God also reveals His hand through His creation, and the Holy Spirit guides and leads believers in truth as He works in their lives. Therefore, when distress comes, a person needs to open his eyes rather than become blinded by the circumstances.

Open your eyes to God’s Word. Open your eyes to how God is moving in your life. As a person recognizes God’s work and sees how He is speaking through His Word and working in his circumstances, he can receive the strength to continue patiently in prayer.

Rachel: When Prayer Becomes the Only Option

Rachel provides another example of desperation leading to prayer.

Genesis 30:22-24: “And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb. And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach: And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me another son.”

Rachel had tried everything in her competition with Leah. She had a powerful drive within her, and when everything else failed, there was one thing left: prayer. The fact that everything else had failed did not cause that drive within her to disappear. Instead, it made her more desperate. Sometimes desperation comes when God brings a person to the point where there is nothing else to rely upon.

Anger and jealousy can sometimes become driving forces that make a person desperate. This should not be the normal way a person approaches prayer, but Scripture also shows that there can be a form of godly jealousy. Paul himself spoke of having a godly jealousy.

Godly jealousy can increase the drive and desperation to pray harder and can even cause a person to persevere longer.

Jacob: Fear That Drives a Person to Pray

There is another factor that can drive a person to persistent prayer: fear. This is not paranoid fear. It is the kind of fear that causes a person to recognize that God is the only answer and the only one who can rescue him from a situation.

There are people who, even though they have backslidden and no longer attend church, will pray all night when something terrible happens. Why? Fear has driven them to recognize their need for God.

Jacob experienced this kind of fear when he was afraid of Esau.

Genesis 32:24-30: “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.”

Jacob was a wicked sinner. He had made many mistakes. Yet he did not quit praying. He could have said, “God, I have messed up too badly. I am too wicked to come before You.” Instead, Jacob held on because he was afraid. He was essentially saying: “God, I know I have messed up. I know I am a problem maker. But I am not going to quit praying to You.”

His fear drove him to continue seeking God.

Do Not Let Guilt Make You Quit Praying

This is especially important for someone who has sinned. A person may become so guilty over his sin that he stops praying. He thinks, “I am too wicked. I have failed God too badly.” But Jacob demonstrates the opposite response.

If a person is truly afraid of his wickedness and of letting God down, that fear should drive him toward God rather than away from Him. When a person quits praying because of guilt, it may indicate that he has begun to accept his sin. He may have concluded, “This is just who I am. This is how I will be for the rest of my life.” That is a sign of defeat.

If a person is truly afraid of sin, he will not quit. No matter how wicked he has been, he will continue patiently praying. Jacob did not allow his wickedness to stop him from praying, and God answered him mightily.

In Summary, Three Things That Help Us Persevere in Prayer

When it becomes difficult to pray patiently, there are three important things to remember.

1. Seek God’s Strength

It is God’s strength that keeps a person going. Listen to His voice through His Word. Seek Him. Ask Him for the strength to continue. When a person has no strength left, God can provide the strength necessary to persevere.

2. Godly Jealousy

Jealousy is not always sinful. Paul spoke about godly jealousy. There can be a godly drive that causes a person to seek God more intensely. This kind of drive can increase desperation and help a person continue patiently in prayer for a long time.

3. A Healthy Fear of the Lord

Fear can also drive a person toward God. When someone is afraid and realizes that God is the only one who can rescue him from his situation, that fear can produce persistent prayer. When a person recognizes the seriousness of sin and the greatness of God, he will continue seeking Him rather than giving up.