NOVEMBER 14, 2026 FATHER BRANDEN GORDON SDB
In the parable of the persistent widow, Jesus encourages us to persevere in prayer. He tells us not to lose heart, even when it seems like our prayers are going unanswered. In reality, there has never been a prayer that has gone unanswered. That’s because every prayer is answered by God, but in one of three ways: “Yes,” “No,” and “Not yet.”
We all like when the answer to our prayers is “Yes,” when our desire corresponds with God’s will, and he grants our request. What a blessing it is to pray for someone who we would like to convert to the faith, and suddenly that person is touched by grace, and begins to pray and to receive the sacraments. How wonderful it is when we pray for the healing of a loved one and that person is healed, either naturally, by a medical treatment, or supernaturally, by a miracle.
I am sure that many of us can recall moments when we’ve experienced the power of prayer, when God’s answer to one of our petitions was a resounding “Yes.” Such moments are a cause for gratitude. I’m also sure that many of us have had experiences when God’s answer to our prayers has either been “No,” or “Not yet.” So why does God grant some requests and not others? Why does he convert and heal some people, but not others?
I think that when it comes to praying for someone’s conversion there is a complex interplay between God’s will, the quantity and quality of prayer required to merit grace for that person, and the person’s free will. When it comes to conversion, God’s will is clearly stated in 1 Timothy 2:4, where Saint Paul writes that God desires all people to be saved.
God won’t, however, violate a person’s free will, no matter how many prayers we offer for his or her conversion. Praying for that person can render him or her more likely to open his or her hearts to the grace of repentance and conversion, but the final decision ultimately lies with that person’s free will: his or her choice to either accept or reject God’s offer of salvation.
As for praying for someone’s physical healing, there’s a great mystery here. Why does God grant the grace of healing to some, whether by the ordinary means of medical treatment, or by the extraordinary means of miracles, but not to others? And if we pray for a person’s healing, and they’re not healed, is it safe to conclude that our prayers were deficient in some way?
Regarding the first question, why does God heal some and not others, let’s turn to the story of the raising of Lazarus in John 11. Lazarus’ sisters send word to the Apostles that their brother has fallen gravely ill. And in response, Jesus says the following: that Lazarus’ illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, and the Son of God, and that the Son of God may be glorified through it.
And then Lazarus dies. So since we can neither conclude that Jesus was mistaken or that he was lying, by “death” he must have meant spiritual death, which is to say, separation from God. Then Jesus travels to Bethany, and he raises Lazarus from physical death.
And it is by this miracle that Jesus reveals the meaning of his message to Martha and Mary: that God had allowed Lazarus to die physically, so that Jesus would have an opportunity to work a miracle, and that by this miracle Jesus would inspire others to faith, thereby saving them from a death that is infinitely worse than physical death, which is eternal separation from God.
And so here in this story we see to principles at work. One is that God sometimes permits and evil thing to happen so that he might draw out of it some greater good. And the second principle is that all things work for the good of those who love God. And it’s important for us to keep these two principles in mind, in cases in which God doesn’t intervene directly with a miracle of healing.
Certainly it takes a great act of faith to apply these principles when there’s no apparent reason for the suffering and death of a loved one. Often all that we can do in such situations is simply meditate on the passion and death of Christ, because these events teach us that suffering and death have redemptive value when we offer them up to God in union with Jesus’ passion.
When someone continues being ill or dies despite our prayers, we can’t conclude that this means that we haven’t prayed it with enough faith. The only conclusion that we can draw in such situations is that God will bring forth some greater good out of this physical evil, a good from which we can benefit if we remain in God’s love.
God’s response to prayer is ultimately out of our control. But what’s within our control is our approach to prayer, which is to be one of faith-filled perseverance.
“Pray, hope, and don’t worry.” This was Padre Pio’s advice to so many people who brought their troubles to him. He would say, “Pray, hope, and don’t worry.” And this is the same advice that Jesus offers to us, in the parable of the persistent widow.
For if even the unjust judge eventually rendered the widow a just decision, how much more will our heavenly Father take care of those who persevere in prayer? How much more will God bless those who pray always and do not lose heart?
