Are You Listening to Me?
PSALM 28
Lord, I call to You; my rock, do not be deaf to me.
If You remain silent to me, I will be like those going down to the Pit.
Listen to the sound of my pleading when I cry to You for help, when I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.
Do not drag me away with the wicked, with the evildoers, who speak in friendly ways with their neighbors while malice is in their hearts.
Repay them according to what they have done—according to the evil of their deeds.
Repay them according to the work of their hands; give them back what they deserve. Because they do not consider what the Lord has done or the work of His hands,
He will tear them down and not rebuild them.
Blessed be the Lord, for He has heard the sound of my pleading.
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.
Therefore my heart celebrates, and I give thanks to Him with my song.
The Lord is the strength of His people;
He is a stronghold of salvation for His anointed.
Save Your people, bless Your possession, shepherd them, and carry them forever.
HEARD
Have you felt the desperation of not being listened to, of not being heard? It is a helpless feeling. When our voices are neglected, set aside as not worth hearing, met with aloofness or cruelty, shame starts to spread over us like an out-of-control vine—twisting and tangling and, in time, strangling our voices completely. When we are not heard, we begin to believe that there is no reason to speak. We retreat further and further inward and in time, lose ourselves completely. I know this shame far too well. It’s my marriage story and it’s a painful one.
Jesus said that our words come directly from our hearts (Luke 6:35). Our voices speak from the very center of our being. Our souls pour out speech. Our very personhood is demeaned when we are not heard.
So what should we do when we feel like God is not listening? Our prayers seem to be bouncing off the ceiling, unacknowledged, unheard. We start to feel desperate and wonder if we are worth hearing. Maybe God has more important things to do than to listen to our cries. Maybe it’s best to just shrink back and stop speaking.
Oh friends, let’s battle our hearts on this one. Let’s look to God’s Word to see His true character shine forth. He is a God who LISTENS. Let that settle over you for a bit. We know He is a God who speaks. And truly, He would have every right to stop there. But He not only speaks, He listens. He hears.
He is a good Father who tells us to approach His throne of grace with confidence (Hebrews 4:16). His ears are open to our cries (1 Peter 3:12). Before we’ve even formed our words, God knows them (Psalm 139:4). He is near to those who call on Him (Psalm 145:18) And maybe best of all, He bends down to listen (Psalm 116:2)! Think of a loving father getting down on his knees before his child, face to face, eye to eye. What does that speak to the child? Value, worth, dignity. He hears you. He bends down to you. His ears are open to you when you cry.
So our response?
I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy.
Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!
Psalm 116:1-2
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
In what area of your life are you feeling like God is deaf to your pleading? (Psalm 28:1) (What recent prayers seem to be bouncing off the ceiling? Where do you find yourself asking, “Lord, are you even listening to me?”)
What emotions rise to the surface when you feel like you are not heard? (Try to pinpoint the root emotions that are triggered when you feel unheard—ex: shame.)
In what practical ways can you battle your heart to remember and believe that God hears you? (Who in your church could you ask to shoulder this burden with you? What verses could you memorize? Could you dedicate 5 minutes of prayer each morning to this issue? Could you start a journal and list out where you desire for God to hear you and then spend time presenting those requests to Him in prayer?)
As you reflect on the truth that God bends down to hear you when you cry and lament, what is your response? (Are you lead to worship? Pray more? Be a better listener to your loved ones? What steps of action can you take today?)
SHATTERING & SHAPING
“Do not waste my greatest sorrows,O God,
but use them to teach me to live in Your presence
- fully alive to pain and joy and sorrow and hope -
in the places where my shattering and Your shaping meet.
Amen.”
—Every Moment Holy
LAMENT RESOURCE NO. 4
Our resource for you this week is Every Moment Holy Volume 2: Death, Grief, Hope put out by The Rabbit Room Press. I’m not sure if you’ve grown up in a liturgical faith tradition (I didn’t really!), but I have come to really cherish liturgy as I’ve walked through seasons of deep grief. Sometimes I struggle to know what to pray. Liturgies are written prayers meant to be prayed corporately or individually. These prayers help focus my mind and heart when the words just aren’t coming.
This collection of liturgies from Every Moment Holy is incredible. They are new liturgies for daily life. We highly recommend this series, especially if you are finding prayer particularly difficult during a season of suffering. Check out our stories today to see the inside and table of contents. These books also make a really great gift for those in your life who are walking through a painful season or loss of a loved one. My friend Aprile bought me my copies and they’ve become a treasured resource. You can find them at www.everymomentholy.com or wherever you buy books. Head over to their website to download 9 free liturgies! They also have an Every Moment Holy app with free daily liturgies alongside the entire collection. Do you have a copy of these books? We’d love to hear what you think!
FOR NEXT WEEK
We would encourage you to have a read through Psalm 42 to prepare for next week. We will be asking the question, God, have You forgotten me?
Take note of the four stages of Biblical lament: turning to God, voicing a complaint, asking God to act and resolving to trust. Spend time praying, meditating on and memorizing the verses.
We look forward to looking at this passage together next week! See you Monday…
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