Listen

“Whenever you cry out to me, I’ll answer. I’ll be with you in troubling times. I’ll save you and glorify you. I’ll fill you full with old age. I’ll show you my salvation.”

Psalm 91:15-16

Think

It’s comforting to hear that God is with us when things get tough. But sometimes God’s answers to our prayers don’t come when we’d like or aren’t what we would hope. Like we read earlier this week, James and John got an answer like this from Jesus when they asked to be at his right and left hand, a “that’s not for me to decide” and a reminder that leadership doesn’t look quite like they thought.

Trusting God means opening ourselves to the unexpected and being humble enough to consider that our answers might not be the only ones. Of course, that’s easier said than done, in the middle of everything life throws at us: wondering what’s coming next, worrying about a loved one, or figuring out who we really are in the face of all the things that compete for our attention. Whether God’s answers to your prayers are ringing loud and clear, or feeling especially hard to hear, remember God’s promise:

I’ll be with you.

I’ll be with you.

I’ll be with you.

Allison Wehrung

Question to Ponder:

What does the phrase “God hears our prayers” mean to you?

Pray

Ever-present God, it can be hard to feel your presence when things get difficult.

Right now, I’m struggling to feel your presence in…

Help me to trust that you are with me no matter what.

Amen.

Go

God be the love to search and keep me

God be the prayer to move my voice

God be the strength to now uphold me

O Christ, surround me

O Christ, surround me

Richard Bruxvoort Colligan, “O Christ, Surround Me”