Who do you call when you’re suffering?
Your mom?
Your best friend?
Your mentor?
Sometimes it seems way more helpful to pick up the phone than get on our knees, doesn’t it?
But while we absolutely should reach out to others for help, our first call in trouble should always be to God.
Why?
Because God understands us deeply and can help in ways our loved ones never could.
Psalm 10:17 really spells that out for us:
“O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear” (ESV)
God doesn’t just hear our words. He hears our desires—our longings. Our heart cries!
And that enables Him to address not just our external needs, but our internal ones as well.
The words translated here as “you encourage them” really mean that He strengthens their heart.
In other words, because God hears the deepest needs of your heart He can meet them.
I don’t know about you, but sometimes even I don’t even know what my deepest needs are! So I’m really thankful that when I pray, God looks past my tangled words to my desire so that He can speak to what’s really going on.
But what about you? How does knowing that God knows you intimately and can meet intimate needs encourage you to be real with Him in prayer this week?
Is there a specific desire or need of your heart that needs to experience God’s strengthening touch? Bring it to the Lord in prayer.
Where you long for peace, He can flood you with His calming, reassuring presence. Where you need courage, He can empower. When you need to know you’re loved, He can whisper “I love you” through the pages of His Word or a stranger’s act of kindness.
Take your desires to the One who can meet them today. He is trustworthy.