Prayer of Annoyance (Luke 11:5-8

 Then teaching them more about prayer, he used this illustration: "Suppose you went to a friend's house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread.  You would say to him, 'A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.' He would call out from his bedroom, 'Don't bother me.  The door is locked for the night, and we are all in bed, I can't help you this time.'  But I tell you this--- though he won't do it as a friend, if you keep knocking long enough he will get up and give you what you want so his reputation won't be damaged.

A friend certainly has a reputation to keep toward you and others.  A good friend will help you as you would help them.  Jesus, though, is emphasizing the need to be importunate in prayer.  Staying on target in your prayer is important.  Too many of us wonder in left field and never receive what we need.  So many of us never see what we need before we receive it.  That friend knew exactly what he had come for.  Three loaves of bread and he was determined to get it by knocking, seeking and asking.  He was serious and ready to do whatever it took.

Prayer is mostly private in the Bible and only a few times in the Old and New Testament it is a corporate matter.  Jesus make it very private in this passage.  It is between friends.  In the few times that it is practiced publicly in the Bible, it appears that the supplications are always for community and even national needs, never for private needs.  Jesus seems to mostly find a need for prayer on his own in the middle of the night and that's where the emphasis is in the Gospels.

I wish you a great weekend!

Thank you!