Hearing His Voice #222

The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.

Psalm 18:13

David was in a terrible predicament. He had been pursued by enemies for years, surrounded and outnumbered at times, and hiding in caves and at oases at others. As he always did in seemingly hopeless situations, he cried out to God. And as Psalm 18 describes, God answered with power and a flair for the dramatic.

It’s the ultimate answer to prayer: A child of God cries out and God answers with thunder and lightning and earthquakes. The rescuer God rides in on a heavenly chariot and routs the enemy. In words reminiscent of the Exodus and the deliverance at the Red Sea, David applies God’s power to his own situation, which on the surface wasn’t nearly as dramatic. But in the behind-the-scenes war, it was just as significant. David survived his enemies and became king because God went to war using the power of His voice.

That’s how God fights. Just one word from His mouth can turn a situation around completely. The mountains and seas and all the forces of nature are at His command. His angels respond decisively to His every word. When God speaks, things happen.

We long for such answers to prayer. When we cry out for God’s voice, it isn’t just so He will give us direction; it’s also for Him to speak into the situations of our lives to change them. We can ask Him to issue commands and utter decrees that shape our circumstances and turn our predicaments into opportunities. We can even give audible voice to His promises and decrees, speaking His words into the predicaments of our lives. Under God’s authority, all creation must respond to His voice. When we speak His words, creation must respond to us, as well. The thunder of God’s voice changes the world around us.

Lord, let Your words resound for me, in me, and through me. Speak into my situation. Just one word from You changes everything, and I need change. Ride into my battles in the power of Your word.