A Plea For God To Listen

LORD, hear my prayer!

Listen to my plea!

Don’t turn away from me

in my time of distress.

Bend down to listen,

and answer me quickly when I call to you.

For my days disappear like smoke,

and my bones burn like red-hot coals. . . .

But you, O LORD, will sit on your throne forever.

Your fame will endure to every generation.

Psalm 102:1-3, 12

Like a page ripped out of a diary, this prayer gives us a glimpse into the prayer life of someone in great suffering. Many believe it is the journaled thoughts of an Israelite who was exiled to the wicked city of Babylon. The heartbeat of this prayer is simple: “Please listen. I need you.” The author of this prayer asked God to “bend down to listen” To him whisper his needs. No pretenses. No attempts to sound brave. The author of this prayer was devastated, so he cried out to God, begging him to hear his requests.

Go to your Father with your needs today. Ask for his ear to listen and his hand to comfort you as you lay out your concerns before him.

• Dear Lord, hear my prayer and answer me . . .