God Hears The Cries Of His People

God Hears The Cries Of His People

The Israelites still groaned beneath their burden of slavery. They cried out for help, and their pleas for deliverance rose up to God. God heard their cries and remembered his covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He looked down on the Israelites and felt deep concern for their welfare. –Exodus 2:23-25

“God, do you hear me? Do you even care?” Sound familiar? Sometimes we can’t help but wonder if God hears our groanings and our calls for help. He doesn’t seem to move. He doesn’t seem moved. So we give up. Our groaning becomes complaining, and instead of looking up to God for deliverance, we look around for narcotic fixes to anesthetize the pain, or look down, focusing only on the despair of our situation.

Surely the Israelites grew weary of groaning and crying out to God for help. They must have wondered if God heard them. And if he did, did he even care? There was no way for them to comprehend that God’s plan for deliverance was already in motion when Pharaoh’s daughter pulled baby Moses out of the river. They couldn’t see the burning bush hundreds of miles away as God called and began to prepare Moses to lead them out of Egypt. They wanted relief right now, just as we do.

Though they may have felt their prayers were going nowhere, these verses reveal that God heard, he remembered his promise, he looked at their need, and he felt deep concern for them. And his concern moved him to action.

And if you are his child, you can be confident that God hears your cries. Those around you may have stopped listening, or you may be good at hiding your tears from others, but God hears. And when he hears, he remembers his promises to you—to walk with you and guide you and to be a refuge for you in times of trouble. He sees what is happening and not happening in your life, in your family, inside your body, outside of your control, and he cares deeply. He will act in his own timing, which may be far different from yours. So keep crying out to him. He hears. He cares deeply.

My Deliverer, I’m determined to keep crying out to you in faith even when I don’t sense that you hear me. By faith I believe that you not only hear me, but that you also care and will fulfill your promises to me in your perfect timing.

DIGGING DEEPER