Abraham spoke again: "Please forgive my boldness in continuing to speak to you, Lord. I am only a man and have no right to say anything.

"Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.

As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Well, what then? I tell you that even if he will not get up and give you the bread because you are his friend, yet he will get up and give you everything you need because you are not ashamed to keep on asking.

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to teach them that they should always pray and never become discouraged.

Do all this in prayer, asking for God's help. Pray on every occasion, as the Spirit leads. For this reason keep alert and never give up; pray always for all God's people.

Let us have confidence, then, and approach God's throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it.

He opened for us a new way, a living way, through the curtain---that is, through his own body.

So let us come near to God with a sincere heart and a sure faith, with hearts that have been purified from a guilty conscience and with bodies washed with clean water.