“For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened” (Luke 11:10 NLT)

After teaching his disciples how to pray, Jesus explained the importance of persistent prayer. The art of persistent asking seems to be something we’re born with, yet outgrow. Consider the child asking for a cookie. No one has to teach the child persistence. Even the mother with the most determined resolve finds herself giving in to the child’s repetitive request. Why does Jesus use so many “persistent” asking stories, such as the knocking neighbor (Luke 11:5-8) or the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8), to illustrate how to pray? Is it because the Lord is hard of hearing? Or hesitant to respond? No. The Lord hears and the Lord loves to respond to us. The emphasis on persistence seems more likely to point to our own hearts. That we will be child-like in our dependence on God. The Kingdom economy is one of asking and receiving with childlike faith.