Keep Trying – Advice for life and prayer

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.”  We hear this saying so often as we grow up that we often stop paying attention to it. A roll of the eyes, a shake of the head, a shrug of shoulders – so many ways to tell the one who has spoken these words to us that we don’t really want to try any more. But “keep trying” is generally not bad advice. So many things we need to do or want to do require persistence. Babies have to keep trying to learn to sit up, to crawl, to stand, to walk. We have to practice to learn to speak. Just about everything about being a human being requires some sort of practice. Only a smile or a happy laugh seem to come naturally. They are among the most welcome things any of us ever give or receive.

Trying in an Ancient Conflict

In the years between the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and their entry into Palestine, there were forty years of traveling around the Sinai Peninsula and lands east of the Jordan River. There were already people living there and sometimes conflicts arose.

At one point, Amalek led an army against the Israelites. Moses recognized that Joshua was a natural leader in defense of the people against other warring groups, so he had Joshua choose the men who would join in battle against Amalek. Moses went to a hilltop nearby to pray for God’s help and support in the battle. He raised his arms over his head in prayer.

While Moses’ arms were raised, the battle went well for Israel. But he couldn’t keep his arms up in the air unsupported for very long. Whenever he lowered them to rest, the battle shifted and Amalek’s forces gained ground.

Fortunately, two other men were there with Moses. They found a rock on which he could sit and then each stood beside him, helping him hold his arms up in prayer. They did this for  hours, all day long, until at last the battle was won by Joshua and the Israelites. (Ex 17:8-13)

Moses had to keep trying, and his friends helped make that possible. It was a community activity.

A Widow Keeps Trying

Sometimes we wonder if our prayers are heard. In hard times, we may wonder if God cares or if we should keep trying. Jesus gave us a story to help us understand.

Widows in Jesus’ day were among the most vulnerable people. They had no real rights. Women’s identities were based on the men in their family. First their father, then their husband, and eventually, their sons. Once a woman was married, her father was no longer responsible for her. If her husband died and she had no adult sons, she was on her own. But there were no real jobs or careers for women, so poverty and insecurity were their lot.

So, here was Jesus’ story. A widow had a claim for justice and went to the local court to claim her rights. The judge at the court was not an honest man. He ruled against her and in favor of her opponent. She brought the case again, and again he ruled against her. This happened repeatedly. Finally, the judge had had enough. He decided the only way he was going to get this settled was to rule in her favor, lest she eventually find a way to hurt him.

Jesus pointed out that because she kept trying, she eventually prevailed in the case, even against an unjust judge. How much more likely, therefore, was it that God would hear the prayers of his people. God, the just one, would come to help those who call on him. (Lk 18:1-8)

Does this mean that whatever we ask for will be granted? Well … if it’s something that is good for us or for the community, then yes. If not, then something else may be God’s gift of a response to the prayer.

The important thing is to keep praying, to continue to trust that the Father cares and is looking out for us. Keep trying. Keep hoping. Keep loving.

A Worthy Goal

Jesus’ teachings about the importance of prayer and persistence were rooted in Hebrew tradition and Scripture. We Christians sometimes think of Scripture primarily in terms of the writings of the followers of Jesus. But for Jesus and his followers, Scripture was the tradition of the Hebrew people – the stories of how everything came to be as it is now, as well as the history of their nation. The Law, the teachings of the prophets, the wisdom learned through the ages – all were/are part of Scripture.

St. Paul reminded Timothy of the wisdom learned from the Scriptures. This wisdom is the basis for teaching, guiding, even reproving (scolding) those whose actions are not in line with the Father’s hopes and dreams for us.

Paul notes, “Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it.”  Point 1 – The validity of sources of teaching and information from humans matters!

He adds, “… from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation…” Point 2 – Scripture becomes a source of wisdom for us from infancy.

Scripture, inspired by God over the centuries, provides the background truths that we now bring to our own ministry of teaching and witnessing to the Good News through our good works and care of others. (2 Tim 3:14-4:2)

What then are we to do with what we have heard and learned from our teachers (such as Paul) and Scripture? We are to “be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient” in sharing it with those we meet and with whom we interact.

Keep Trying – Convenient or Inconvenient

Today we too are called to be persistent in our prayer, in our actions, in sharing and living out what we have come to believe. God who is love calls each of us to love and care for all the rest of the people with whom we live. This isn’t just caring for our immediate family, our extended family, or those who share our ethnic, cultural, or national identity.

When our leaders fail to care for or target the vulnerable, we are called to speak out.

When access to housing, education, nutrition, healthcare, safety is restricted to only certain groups of people in our communities, we are called to speak out.

When those with lower incomes are treated with less care or consideration in public places or in businesses or schools, we are called to speak out.

When those whose names sound strange or foreign to us and so we treat them with scorn or dismiss them as illegals, therefore criminals and not worthy of common courtesy or legal human rights, we are called to speak out.

The Psalmist cries out to us in the voice of the poor and the oppressed, “I lift up my eyes toward the mountains; whence shall help come to me? My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” (Ps 121:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8)

This week, may we be ones who speak and act on behalf of the poor and the oppressed. May we be among those who count on the help of the Lord and share the gifts we have been given for the good of all.

Keep trying – in life, in faith, and with confidence that the Lord hears the cry of the poor and comes to their aid.

Readings for the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

And more thoughts from several years ago.