George Mueller wrote: ?never give up until the answer comes. The great fault of the children of God is that they do not continue in prayer; they do not go on praying; they do not persevere. If they desire anything for God?s glory, they should pray until they get it.?

I think most Christians would agree that they have seen an increase of focused prayer for our government over this past year and in particular during the recent federal election. It has been awesome to travel to different regions across Canada and see 24/7 prayer initiatives springing up; calls to fast and pray; and young people taking up the baton of prayer.

This past week we have been truly honored to host a team of 23 intercessors representing 12 different churches and sent by the Vancouver ministerial. I have watched as they have become deeply challenged by the necessity of ongoing prayer for our nation?s leaders and the need to continue with the same fervency of prayer for those who have been ?prayed into? office.

Team leader, Sara Maynard said, ?When you send someone to the frontline and you step back leaving them abandoned, God calls this murder.? (see 2 Sam.11:15 regarding Uriah).

Recently, there have been some slight hiccups with our newly elected government, which demonstrates our ongoing need to continue to stand behind our government in prayer, regardless of their political stripe.

The Scriptures tell us that we can fail to receive something we?ve asked God for, not because it isn?t God?s will to provide it, but because we did not persevere in praying.

Daniel prayed for 21 days, several times a day, and yet the angel said to him, ?Daniel, since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. The answer to Daniel?s pleas / prayer were almost immediate but it required perseverance until the angel of the Lord broke through with the answer. What is most amazing here is that nothing was happening in the heavenlies until Daniel set his heart to pray. His prayer initiated a response by God which was hindered by the Prince of Persia. It was because Daniel persisted in prayer that the archangel, Michael, was dispatched to bring the victory. God allowed this to be recorded in Scripture, to encourage us to pray and not give up until we see the fullness of victory. Too often we are willing to settle for less than what God is willing to give us.

We need to persevere and continue to press on through to the finish line. We have only begun fulfilling the mandate we have been given to first of all to pray for those in authority over us (1 Tim. 2:2). This will require us to carry our leaders across the finish line as they have just begun their calling of leading our country.

Representing you in our nation's capital,

Rob and Fran Parker