The God who Hears

I awoke at 2 a.m. and lay there unable to go back to sleep. There was no good reason for being awake. I hadn't eaten anything different, I didn't fall asleep watching television, and I didn't have caffeine. But I was wide awake!

So after tossing and turning for a bit, I used it as an opportunity to pray. I prayed for safety for a few different friends I have that are stuck in the Middle East at the moment and unable to get home. I prayed for my family, immediate and extended. I prayed for wisdom as I'm juggling many things. I prayed about a webinar I will be leading next month and a conference I am putting together. 

At times, I wonder if God really hears my small requests when there are bigger and harder things in the world. I mean my little problems really pale in comparison with the big picture. And our finite minds really cannot comprehend how God can hear all of the prayers of everyone at the same time.

However, I had a revelation about this yesterday morning. I was on a Zoom meeting with women around the world through our denomination. We were praying together about the situation going on in the Middle East. We have churches and fellowships there and many of our workers are stuck in place and unable to leave. So we prayed. Altogether, out loud with our mics unmuted, and in our different languages.

Initially, it sounded like a garbled mess. There were women praying in languages I couldn't understand. Some prayed loudly, some prayed more quietly and I'm sure there were a few that just prayed silently. I had a hard time actually praying at first because it was distracting to me.

But as time went on and I was able to settle into my own prayers, something else happened. I was able to pick out voices in the cacophony. I recognized the voice of my friend from Quebec, another from Cote d'Ivoire, and another from the Philippines. I was able to hear the distinctive voice of my friend from Ecuador and another from Brazil. It was neat how even in the middle of so many different voices and languages I could recognize my friends' voices and hear their words.

And then it was a lightbulb going off in my head. In the middle of millions of voices around the world, God intimately knows each one. He can pick your voice out of the crowd. He hears you even as he hears someone else praying at the same exact time. And that is beautiful!

God cares about us and our problems, big and small, and actually hears and answers each of us. So while my prayers may be for something not as significant as someone elses at the moment, God still hears me. God still cares about my concerns. God still wants to respond and answer. 

I am so thankful for that little glimpse I received yesterday about a truth that is so much larger than my finite brain can really understand. 

God is the God who sees, who hears, who knows and who answers. 

Psalm 34:17 ~

"The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles".