Is God listening when I cry out because of my troubles? Does he really care?
Psalm 18:6In my distress I cried out to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.
Psalm 31:7I will be glad and rejoice in your unfailing love, for you have seen my troubles, and you care about the anguish of my soul.
Psalm 106:44Even so, he pitied them in their distress and listened to their cries.
Nehemiah 9:27So you handed them over to their enemies, who made them suffer. But in their time of trouble they cried to you, and you heard them from heaven. In your great mercy, you sent them liberators who rescued them from their enemies.
Jonah 2:2I cried out to the Lord in my great trouble, and he answered me. I called to you from the land of the dead, and Lord, you heard me!
John 16:33“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
James 1:2-3Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.
The Bible doesn’t speculate about whether or not trouble will come. It warns that trouble will come. Our troubles don’t mean that God has turned his back on us or shut his ears to our prayers. God has both a listening ear and a caring heart, and his Word assures us that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Adversity will come, but it brings with it opportunities for us to strengthen our faith in God. If there were no troubles, we would have no need for faith. We may often feel that our need is impossible to meet, that we are too weak to go on, or that it’s too late for solutions. Yet these are the times when God’s power can be most evident in our lives. When we wait for the moment of God’s rescue, we will experience his presence in new and life-changing ways.
Matthew 11:28Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”
1 Peter 5:7Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
God’s ears are always open to us. He is never too busy or preoccupied with anything—even managing the world—to listen to our every need. Tell him the worries and cares on your heart. He will listen in love and give you the wisdom you need for today.
Psalm 23:4Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.
Psalm 46:1God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.
Isaiah 30:20Though the Lord gave you adversity for food and suffering for drink, he will still be with you to teach you. You will see your teacher with your own eyes.
Isaiah 43:2“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.”
Romans 8:35-39Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? . . . No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God not only listens, he is with us through adversity. His presence gives us peace, strength, and comfort in the most difficult times.
Isaiah 53:3-5He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.
Matthew 4:1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil.
Matthew 27:39-44, 46The people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery. “Look at you now!” they yelled at him. “You said you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days. Well then, if you are the Son of God, save yourself and come down from the cross!” The leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders also mocked Jesus. “He saved others,” they scoffed, “but he can’t save himself! So he is the King of Israel, is he? Let him come down from the cross right now, and we will believe in him! He trusted God, so let God rescue him now if he wants him! For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” Even the revolutionaries who were crucified with him ridiculed him in the same way. . . . At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
Mark 14:34-36He [Jesus] told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by. “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
Mark 14:45-46As soon as they arrived, Judas walked up to Jesus. “Rabbi!” he exclaimed, and gave him the kiss. Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him.
Luke 22:59-61About an hour later someone else insisted, “This must be one of them, because he is a Galilean, too.” But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Suddenly, the Lord’s words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.”
John 11:32-35When Mary arrived and saw Jesus, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled. “Where have you put him?” he asked them. They told him, “Lord, come and see.” Then Jesus wept.
John 19:1-3Then Pilate had Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip. The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they put a purple robe on him. “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked, as they slapped him across the face.
Hebrews 4:15-16This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.
We serve a God who not only empathizes with our struggles but experienced them himself. Jesus experienced the pressure of temptation, the sorrow of losing a loved one, the anxiety of a great fear, the pain of betrayal and rejection, and the agony of physical torture. In his dying moments, Jesus even experienced a feeling of distance and abandonment by God the Father. Whatever our darkest moments may be, we know we have a God who has walked through them himself, and who will walk with us every step of the way.
Nahum 1:7The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him.
Matthew 28:20“Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
John 16:33“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
1 Peter 5:7Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
The presence of adversity is not a sign of the absence of God’s care. Nothing can ever separate us from his love.
