You’re here. You’re at that moment. Life has hit you so many times in the gut that you can’t breathe. You’ve searched your mind time and time again trying to find a solution, but you’re coming up empty. You feel the shame, you feel the anxiety, and you feel this discontent. Your heart is aching. You’re miserable. You feel as if you have nowhere else to go, so finally, you are ready to turn to God. Maybe He does exist and will listen. You go to open your mouth to speak, and then you are immediately flooded with a dozen reasons as to why God should not and will not hear what you have to say. If you have found yourself ready to explain why God doesn’t hear you, let me be the first to tell you, God already heard you before you opened your mouth.
Hebrews 4:16 states, “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Please understand the depth and power of this gift God has given to you. God is “rich in mercy” and has “immeasurable riches of… grace”[1]. There are no limitations on this supply. Each and every time you pray, or talk to God, you are heard. If you have unlimited access to the creator of all things you have come to know and love, why would you let anything stop you from having that conversation He desires to have with you?
No one is blaming you for feeling like you don’t deserve to be heard by God. Circumstances and past sins have a tendency to shout down any attempt to hope for connection. Let me encourage you, all that shouting doesn’t stop God from hearing precisely what you want to say. If you want to hear from God and speak to God, do it. The desire is all you need.
Victoria Osteen shared one of the greatest insights on God’s character[2]. From what I remember, she explained that she had just gotten her driver’s license, and was ready to drive all over town, so her father asked her to go to the grocery store and come right back. He also added that she not roll down the front, passenger window, because it was broken, and needed to be fixed. Instead of obedience, she opted to not only stop by her friend’s house and pick her up, but she also had her friend roll down the window, causing the glass to shatter.
Wrecked with fear, she had to return home. There was no way to hide what she had done. Had she told her mother, her father would’ve known. Had she tried to get it fixed, her father would’ve known. Somehow, she allowed a quick trip to the market to become a disciplinary moment. Instead of running to any and everyone else she could think of, she decided to come back and face her father boldly. In the middle of her disobedience, she did not run to anyone but her father.
When her father heard about what she had done, he did not berate her. He did not chastise her, punish her, or spank her. He overlooked all of that and was just glad she came home safe. When it came down to it, she was more important than what she damaged. A window could be replaced, but his daughter could not be replaced.
God is just the same with us. When we come to Him, He isn’t worried about any of our sins, faults, shortcomings, or mistakes. We could’ve just committed a sin right before we prayed. Sin could still have its hand on our shoulder, and He couldn’t care less. His only concern is, “Is My child okay?”
The Bible says come boldly to the throne of infinite grace and mercy. It does not say come as a perfect person. It does not say come only on your best days. It does not say come when you are not in your sin. It just says come. It would be wise to not overcomplicate this insight. Don’t allow your thoughts and your expectations to cause you to miss out on the opportunity to just vent to God[3].
If you haven’t eaten or drank in several days, and you walk into your friend’s house, while he’s having a feast, and he says, “Take whatever you want and eat,” are you going to let anything stop you from partaking in the meal? If you know thirst and you know hunger, and you know the relief in having these two pains satisfied, how do you not understand that the same concept applies to you in prayer?
Are you sick? Are you tired? Are you lost? Are you frustrated, sad, confused, desperate, trapped, miserable, and morbid? Then realize that your Friend, who is Christ Jesus, who is God, is waiting with open arms to comfort you, listen to you, and guide you out of your misery. You only need ask. In asking, it is not for Him to hear you, but for you to hear you.
Prayer isn’t for God’s benefit, it is for your own. You need to understand that you have access to the King of kings and Lord of lords. You can talk to the One who was at the beginning of all things and will be at the end of all things. There is nothing new that He hasn’t heard of[4]. You think your problems are unique, but they are not. He has already walked through situations like yours for millennia. He is the expert you’ve been wanting to converse with. You only need to give yourself the opportunity to experience this.
If you think you’ve done too much evil in this world to be heard, realize that God already spoke about you long before you were born. God is willingly ready to respond to your problems. Why do you think He told us about the parable of the prodigal son[5]? He is not waiting for you to reach out to Him so He can finally chastise you and have His “I told you so” moment. He is waiting for you to reach out so He can shout, “Finally! My baby wants Me! Yes! It’s time! Prepare the many blessings I have had stored up for My child since they departed! I’m about to bless them for every day they went without Me!”
God doesn’t care if you sinned. God doesn’t even care if you’ve previously persecuted His believers. Don’t think so? Ask Paul, or should with go by his birth name, Saul[6]? If you need to talk to God, talk to God. Don’t let any misconception about who He is cause you to keep your mouth shut. You go and get what was meant for you.
Prayer changes lives because God answers prayers. If you are sick and tired of being sick and tired, reach out! God has forgiven worse people than you. Do not cover your mouth. Get your blessing! You can be “to’ up from the flo’ up (depraved), if you merely utter His name, there He will respond.
If you are not sure how to pray, read Matthew 6:9-13[7]. If you are not sure about how to speak over yourself, read Numbers 6:22-27[8]. Both of these prayers are easy to find on the internet, for now, and links have been provided below. We could go into how obedience, faith, and knowing what to pray about helps you when you pray, but for now, let’s just open our mouths and talk the way we talk to our friends, lovers, role models, and even strangers. Open up. It is the only way this gets easier.
Some of my greatest and most authentic moments with God have come when I desperately and boldly came to the throne of God. I found out about God’s infinite mercy when I prayed for forgiveness after losing my virginity to sin. I found out about God’s grace when I prayed for guidance as to what I should do with my work life. I’ve found peace when I prayed to God for relief in the midst of depression. I found joy when I prayed to God in the midst of a financial crisis. I found strength when I prayed to God right before I stood on a stage to perform a personally written piece in front of hundreds of people.
Be honest with yourself. You’ve been through moments where you hoped and prayed God existed. Life was far too miserable, and you were tired, and you needed a way out. Some of you are in that place right now. The journey to a way out starts with prayer. If you can have enough faith to believe God hears you, then you can walk one more step towards victory. Do not cower back from getting what is already yours. People don’t have to be told to breathe. The body does it naturally. Let it be within your nature to pray. You never know when that boldness will pay off (and it will), and you will be blessed beyond your wildest expectations for it.
Go with God,
Dario Augustus
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[1] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians+2%3A1-10&version=NRSV [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqdkOnHtlts [3] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+11%3A28%2C+John+6%3A37%2C+Isaiah+1%3A18%2C+&version=NRSV [4] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ecclesiastes+1%3A9-10&version=NRSV [5] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2015%3A11-32&version=NRSV [6] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+8%3A1-3%2C+Acts+9%3A1-30%2C+Acts+13%3A4-12&version=NRSV [7] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+6%3A9-13&version=NKJV [8] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers+6%3A22-27&version=NKJV
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