The persistent widow: ‘not manipulation, but trust’

Elaine Storkey believes too many preachers have interpreted this parable wrongly, and reveals what it teaches us today

Study passage: Luke 18:1-8 

How many talks or sermons have you heard on prayer? I have heard too many to count. Some of them do give me a glimpse of the very heart of God, and his desire to bless us when we pray to him. But sometimes I find them less helpful, especially when they suggest that the problem is that I don’t pray hard enough! It’s even worse when they base this judgement on biblical texts. Some preachers even present me with a God who apparently must be persuaded by my insistence before he will listen to my needs.