The Power of Persistence | Coeur d'Alene Photographer

I recently listened to a talk online about the power of persistence in prayer. The speaker used the analogy of chopping wood. He told a story about his own experience with chopping wood and how he started out with no knowledge of how to properly chop wood. He figured if you hit it hard enough, and enough times, the wood will finally crack. It seemed like an easy task, however he soon learned that wasn't the case. The problem was he was hitting in multiple spots, figuring that maybe if he just hits the right spot it will finally split. The key to chopping wood successfully, with minimal hits, is to hit it in the same spot multiple times until it cracks. Of course with experience you learn how to read the wood and know the right spots you can hit that will let you accomplish the job faster. This comes with experience. He was chopping wood with a friend that had far more knowledge than he did when it came to chopping wood. His friend kept this knowledge from him at first because he felt he needed time to let the failed attempts strengthen him. If the guy stays persistent he will figure it out. He closed this story with the statement of what if sometimes the work being done within us is more important to God than the work that can be done through us.

Sometimes we have to go through the failures in order to strengthen ourselves from within, but the key is to keep trying and to keep asking. In prayer we must be consistent. It's so easy to pray and think "well this doesn't work" because we don't get results right away. We are so fixed on an instant gratification mentality that we lose sight of the bigger picture all the time. We want our success, our outcomes, to come right now. But most of the time that isn't how life works. The only true failure is when we stop trying and stop asking. We must stay persistent in our asks and in our attempts. Throughout the process we gain knowledge. With every "no" we become wiser.  Being told no is part of the process. We are all searching for the "right spot" to hit, the one right move in our business, relationships, life in general. What if the right spot is actually staying persistent and taking time? Take the time to absorb what life is trying to teach you. Don't miss out on the work being done within you.

Pray. Work. Repeat.

You can view the full talk by clicking HERE