VOICE OF THE LOGOS: REFLECTION/HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE TWENTY-SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR 1

I’m tired of praying… God is not listening!

First Reading: Malachi 3:13-20
Responsorial Psalm: Ps. 1:1-4,6
Gospel: Luke 11:5-13
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Many people have grown weary of praying at some point, after months or even years of prayer that seem to meet only the silence of heaven. You fasted, did novenas, visited many prayer grounds and even asked others to pray for you, yet nothing seems to change. You look around and notice that those who don’t care about God are progressing in life. They build houses, buy cars, travel abroad, get jobs, and everything seems to work for them. Meanwhile, you are still here, waiting and praying. Sometimes you want to stop praying because you feel God has favourites. You wonder, “What’s the use?” You drag yourself to church, sing, pray, and still return home with a heavy heart. When people say, “Just keep praying,” you feel like shouting back, “For how long?” If that is how you feel, then today’s readings were written exactly for you.

In the first reading (Malachi 3:13-20b), the people of Israel were also frustrated with God. They had returned from exile in Babylon, hoping that after rebuilding the Temple, everything would be fine. But things didn’t go as planned. This book of Malachi was written around 450 years before Christ, during the time of Nehemiah, when Israel was still under Persian rule. The priests had grown careless with worship, and the people felt religion no longer made sense. They complained, “It is useless to serve God; what have we gained by keeping His command?” (Mal 3:14). This was a cry of disappointment, not rebellion. They had expected visible blessings but saw only hardship. The prophet Malachi, whose name in Hebrew Mal’akhi (מַלְאָכִי) means “My messenger,” was sent to correct this thinking. He reminded them that God never forgets the faithful and that a “scroll of remembrance” was written for those who fear Him. The word used for “fear” here is yir’ah (יִרְאָה), which does not mean terror but reverent trust; a kind of awe that believes even when nothing seems to make sense. Malachi was teaching them that faith is not measured by instant results but by trust that endures even in silence.

The Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 1) continues this same message, contrasting the life of the righteous and the wicked. The Psalmist says the righteous person is like a tree planted beside streams of water. The Hebrew word for “planted” here is shatul (שָׁתוּל), meaning “firmly set or intentionally placed.” It shows that the righteous man’s position in God’s plan is not accidental, for he is planted by God Himself. The world may look dry, but that tree’s roots draw from hidden water. Sometimes, beloved, your life might look dry on the surface, but if your roots are deep in God’s Word and His promises, you will not die. You may not bear fruit immediately, but in due season, you will. The psalm reminds us that God is not unjust; He knows those who trust Him. When others are running after quick results, the one who stays with God may look slow, but he is being sustained from underground streams of grace. “The Lord watches over the way of the just” (Ps 1:6). That means God is silently working in ways you cannot see.

Then comes the Gospel (Luke 11:5-13), where Jesus tells the story of a man who kept knocking at midnight. In those days, homes in Palestine had one room shared by the whole family. For someone to get up at midnight and open the door meant disturbing everyone. So, when Jesus described the man’s persistence, the listeners understood it as a very bold act. He kept knocking, not because he wanted to irritate his friend, but because he trusted that the friend would eventually get up. Jesus then said, “Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened.” In Greek, the words used are aiteite (αἰτεῖτε), zēteite (ζητεῖτε), and krouete (κρούετε), all in the present continuous tense, meaning “keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking.” It is not a one-time prayer, but a lifestyle of trust. Jesus was teaching that God’s silence is never neglect. Sometimes, the delay is God’s way of shaping us. He said, “If you, who are evil, know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” (Lk 11:13). That’s the heart of the message… God gives not always what we want, but what we need most, which is Himself.

So, my dear friends in Christ, when prayer feels useless, it is not because God is deaf; it’s because faith is being purified. Like the Israelites, we are tempted to measure faith by results, but God measures it by trust. Like the Psalmist, we are called to be trees that stay rooted even in drought. Like the man in the Gospel, we must keep knocking even when the door seems shut. Every unanswered prayer teaches humility. Every silence of God tests love. Every delay matures faith. God’s time is never late. So, if you are praying for a job, a healing, a child, a change in your life, and it seems nothing is happening, don’t stop. Keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. God’s silence is not absence but preparation. And when His time comes, your waiting will not be in vain, because He never forgets those who trust Him in the dark.

O that today you would listen to his VOICE, harden not your hearts! (Ps. 95:7)

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Shalom!
© Fr. Chinaka Justin Mbaeri, OSJ
Seminário Padre Pedro Magnone, São Paulo, Brazil
nozickcjoe@gmail.com / fadacjay@gmail.com

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Have you prayed your rosary today?