God Has Heard You

God has heard you

Yesterday, I read Psalm chapter 6. The psalm is a personal lament. David is deeply troubled. Throughout the psalm, David continually cries out to God. He not only talks about being weary, he goes as far as to say “for my bones are troubled” and “my soul is greatly troubled”. It’s safe to say that he is going through an extremely challenging time. It’s likely that David’s anguish is as a result of his own sin (see verses one and two). There were a few things, which really struck me in this passage- some more obvious and others perhaps more subtle. Firstly, David runs to God. This is not something He is suffering in silence with. We don’t know who else David spoke to in this time, but it’s clear that David wanted to be vulnerable before God. We know this, not only from this Psalm, but the many others which David wrote.

When we face difficulties, the hardest times in our lives, is God our first port of call? Whether the hard times are self-inflicted or have been done to us, is God who we run to first?

For many of us, I’m sure the answer would be yes. What struck me more than this though, was something that happened later in the chapter. In verse seven David says, “My eye wastes away because of grief; it grows weak because of all my foes.” It doesn’t sound good. It sounds awful, in fact. But then, verses eight and nine attach themselves firmly to the heels of the weary words of verse seven. “Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. The Lord has heard my plea; the Lord accepts my prayer.” Now, as far as I’m aware, nothing of David’s circumstance had changed at this point. David was previously lamenting and weeping before God. But something clicks. The Lord’s strength and power, which David receives through praying in such vulnerability and broken-ness, manifests itself in a complete change of attitude.

David’s circumstances do not change, but His understanding of who God is in the midst of the madness does. How many of us pour out our hearts to God in prayer, and following this, resolve to change our attitudes towards our ‘problem’ and trust that God is in control? We must choose to follow David’s example- walking in victory. In Him, we are more than conquerors. Don’t let guilt, shame, fear or suffering prevent you from accessing His glorious throne of grace.