Day 33: Calling on God

Opening Scripture

Psalm 53:4–5 (NIV)

4 Do all these evildoers know nothing? They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on God. 5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to dread.

Devotional Reflection

If prayer forms our spirit into the likeness of Christ, prayerlessness forms us toward helplessness and hopelessness. In this same psalm, David writes, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” He goes on to describe those who deny God, commit wickedness, and live in fear without reason as people who do not call on God.

This is what happens within us when we neglect prayer. We may never say aloud that there is no God, but we begin to live as though He is absent. When our decisions are shaped by disregard for the Lord, we take matters into our own hands. This often leads to selfishness and harm toward others. We may acknowledge God with our lips, but overlook Him with our hearts. That insincerity leaves us vulnerable to fear, anxiety, and worry.

The word translated call comes from a term that carries the sense of accosting—approaching urgently and insistently. When we stop calling on God in this way, we drift into a life marked by practical denial of Him, even while maintaining religious language.

Jesus illustrates this truth in the parable of the persistent widow. He tells of a widow who repeatedly appeals to an unjust judge. Though the judge initially refuses to act, her persistence becomes impossible to ignore, and he finally grants her request. Jesus uses this story to teach us about persistence in prayer.

In our own prayer lives, we are often tempted to give up too soon. We pray once or twice about an issue, then stop and allow worry to take over. Worse still, we may conclude that God will not act and allow bitterness to settle in our hearts.

Years ago, I sat with an elderly widow who shared her story. She married as an unbeliever, but early in her marriage she gave her life to Christ. From that point on, she prayed faithfully for her husband. She prayed consistently for decades. They were married for more than fifty years, and though her husband resisted the faith for most of his life, in his final days he turned to Christ—confessing his sins and committing the time he had left to Jesus.

She never gave up. Her prayer life reflected enduring faith.

At times, God tarries in granting our requests. He knows that continuing to pray after a delay requires greater faith. Praying for healing when a diagnosis is first given takes faith. Continuing to pray for healing ten years later takes even more. When we do not give up, God uses delay to deepen our faith.

As our faith grows, God entrusts us with greater responsibility—knowing we will remain faithful in hardship, persist in prayer for hardened hearts, and continue rejoicing even when opposed. He can place us in more difficult circumstances, confident we will not lose faith, because through such perseverance He can reach those who seem utterly unreachable.

Though He may delay, He is never late. To God be the glory.

The Examen

1. Where have I been tempted to stop praying and take matters into my own hands instead of continuing to call on God?

2. What situation in my life is God inviting me to bring before Him again with persistence and trust?

Lectio Divina Scripture

Luke 18:7–8 (NIV)

7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?

Read the passage slowly out loud several times. With each reading, emphasize a different word or phrase. Notice what stands out and why.

Prayer Prompt

Lord, teach me to call on You with persistence and faith. Guard my heart from giving up when answers delay, and deepen my trust as I wait on You. Help me to believe that You are always at work—even when I cannot yet see it. Amen.