“The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth. He grants the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cries for help and rescues them.” (Psalm 145:18-19)
Food For Thought: Do you realize how much God wants you just to pray…to just honestly, openly, simply, and continually tell him what’s on your heart? If you’re happy, he hopes you’ll praise…if you’re grateful, he hopes you’ll give thanks…if you’re sad, it’s okay with him if you cry…if you’re guilty, he’s given you a standing invitation to confess your sins…if you need something, all you have to do is ask…if you’re in trouble, yell for help.
In Preaching Today, Rod Cooper tells the story of growing up on a farm where they raised about a thousand pigs a year. In one field, two to three hundred little oinkers were kept. Each day, at 4:00 AM, Rod would go out to feed them, and the little pigs would always scatter.
One day a little piglet came up and began to chew on his foot, so he picked him up and began to pet him. Wanting down, the little guy began to squirm, and when that didn’t work, he let out an ear-splitting squeal. Rod said that within two seconds, about thirty mama pigs weighing 500 pounds each came charging his way. He put the little pig down and headed for the fence, barely making it over before getting munched by those big ol’ sows. And all the mama pigs were snorting and walking back and forth, daring him to come back over and bother one of their kids.
Rod said he realized that the little rascal wasn’t intimidated at all or even afraid in the least because knew he was just one squeal away from all the help he needed.
And so are you! You are just one squeal—just one prayer away from all the help you’ll ever need. God invites you to come to him with all your needs—your simple needs, your quick requests, come with your big, hairy problems, your grateful heart, your fears and your failures—just call out to God and he’ll come close to you. The Lord is close those all who call on him!
Remember, you’re just one squeal away!
Prayer: Lord, thank you for the open door into your presence; the standing invitation to approach your throne of grace. Lord, help me to overcome any reluctance to prayer, even intimidation or misunderstanding that I have regarding prayer. Forgive me for acting as if prayer is more about overcoming your reluctance to answer rather than tapping into your willingness to meet my needs. Help me to understand in the depths of my being that you have instituted prayer as your way for me to experience continual intimacy with you, the Creator of the universe. And Lord, today, I pray that you will come close to me, hear me, meet my needs, grant me the desires of my hearts, enable me to draw close to you, and keep me in your loving care all day long.
One More Thing… Martin Luther wrote in a letter to his wife Kate, “Pray, and let God worry.”
Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive or off-topic.