Ther Persistence of Abraham Lincoln

Take out a five-dollar bill, and ask the children to tell you whose picture is on it. Abraham Lincoln’s! Tell them that he was probably our greatest president ever, but it wasn’t easy for him to become president. Explain that early in his career, Lincoln lost his campaign for Speaker of the House of Illinois … then he lost his run for Congress twice … after he did make it to Congress, he lost the re-election … in addition, he lost two more runs for Senate, as well as a vice-presidential election. Ask them if Lincoln gave up. Absolutely not! Compare him to the persistent widow in Luke 18, a woman who approached a judge again and again, asking for justice. Let the children know that the widow finally got the help she needed, just as Abraham Lincoln finally became president. Emphasize that Jesus wants us to “pray always and not to lose heart,” trusting that God will answer our prayers if we approach him with persistence (Luke 18:1). Encourage the children not to give up, but to pray every day, and to believe that God will answer, even though an answer might not come right away.