Just before today’s passage in St. Luke’s Gospel, Jesus has been telling His disciples about His return in glory and the final establishment of His kingdom. When will it happen? There are no instant answers. It may take time; they will have to be patient and wait. They are called to have faith, faith that the Lord will keep His promises. And the sign of faith is prayer. We are called to go on praying, asking for what we want and not giving up, even if God does not answer immediately.
Often we may hear people say that they have given up praying because God has not answered them. But no prayer is left unanswered by God. Sometimes God does answer prayer immediately, in the way that we see Jesus responding to requests foe healing in the Gospels. Prayer can transform our desires, as Jesus found when He prayed in the garden of Gethsemane. The best way to learn to pray is by doing it, by praying. Take time, waste time, be silent for a while, ask for what you really want and then persevere in your prayer.