The Need to be Persistent

In my reflection of today's readings, one word echoed loudly to me: Persistence. In the gospel it says, "Then He told them a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary (Luke 18:1)." In the second reading it says, "proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient... (2 Tim 4:2)." The 1st reading talks about Moses and the Israelites' battle against the Amalek, "Moses' hands, however, grew tired; so they put a rock in place for him to sit on. Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands, remained steady till sunset (Exodus 17:12)." As long as Moses' hands were raised, the Israelites had the better of the fight.

Through the readings, I am reminded to be persistent in three things. First is to be persistent in prayer. When we ask God of something very important in prayer, how many times do we come before Him and ask for it? When someone is sick, how many times do we pray over the person? I believe the value of persistence in prayer is that we are brought to a point of humility and a complete surrender to God's power.

Second is to be persistent in preaching and witnessing. These two come as a packaged deal. One without the other just won't work. Lately within this decade, preaching has become a less popular word. It is usually associated by long sermons and hard sell convincing to believe in God's word. But as I reflect on it, it is still very important to boldly proclaim God's word. But preaching will never work if our lives don't reflect what we speak about. Witnessing is very powerful, but if it reaches the peak of it's effectiveness and we are still shy to evangelize, then we have lost much of the opportunity to share our faith. Preach the gospel at all times, if necessary use words (St. Francis of Assisi).

Third is to be persistent in pastoring. Most of us have people who need our support, whether they are our children, friends, prayer group members, or office employees. In the First reading, Aaron and Hur supported Moses' arms so that the Israelites will continue to win the battle against the Amalek. If we persist in our support to those entrusted to us, surely God will win for us our battle against life's challenges. Even if we grow weary because they seem unmoved by our efforts, it is God who will change them, encourage them, and bring victory over their lives as well as ours.

Persistence in tagalog may sometimes pertain to being 'makulit.' But like teaching a child, repetition is key. "Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily... (Luke 18:8).

May we persist until we are brought to the point of genuine love and humility.