Tonight's Word 🌱

"Hear my cry, O God; Attend to my prayer.
From the end of the earth I will cry to You,
When my heart is overwhelmed; 

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
For You have been a shelter for me,
A strong tower from the enemy. 

I will abide in Your tabernacle forever. 

I will trust in the shelter of Your wings. Selah"

- Psalm 61: 1-4

A few weeks ago, while returning downhill from a hike as darkness fell, my friend and I passed a chapel. Usually it is quiet when we pass, but this time, the voices of a group of Christian brothers singing emanated through the open windows and blessed the night air with a spiritual flavour. Accompanied by the sounds of a gentle drum, they were singing the heartfelt psalm of David, as is quoted by tonight's scripture. The words of this psalm resonate with many folks, but it was a unique experience listening to male voices banding together in faith, praising the Lord their Father, their source of strength and help, and echoing the words of a fellow brother in the Lord so many years ago.

They were unaware of the two pairs of ears listening in from outside, but the song stayed with me for many days after, even until today. It served as a reminder that no matter the nature of our deepest and most intense heartbreaks, despairs, entangling sins, injustices, longings, protests, states of unrest or feeling threatened, health challenges, medical issues and outcries, we have a listening ear and strong arm we can cry out to, pray to, run to, depend on. Are we worried? Pained? Grieving? Anxious? Angry? He hears us, He sees us, and He draws close to us as we draw close to Him. 

What a comfort it is kmowing that in and out of season, we have a living God who is in touch with us His children! What an inwardly beautiful path to walk with our Father, and knowing He is always with us even to the end! I am thankful to God for the secret places, the high places, the silent moments where our soul can cry out to God and express ourselves unashamedly and sincerely, knowing He is our heavenly Father and we are His children. What a privilege it is to take everything to Him in prayer. Let Him fight the battles for us that we cannot fight for ourselves, and even the ones we think we can.

As we meditate on the words of this psalm and song, may we feel free to bring to Him, something or everything from inside of our hearts that we are inwardly groaning about. God bless and be with you always. 🎧🙏🏼

Prayer:

Thank You Father for being our strong tower, and our mountain top where we can express ourself to You without fear of being heard or judged by others. Hear our cry Lord. I pray for the mother who is fighting cancer, her children and family who are surrounding her in prayer, help and faith. I pray for the son who is fighting the good fight of faith against all odds. I pray for the sister who is seeking to do your will, inspite of the many conficting signals that are influencing to do otherwise. God, hear Your children today. We pray for help, healing, strength, and perseverance through the help of the Holy Spirit. And whatever is not Your will, give us the grace to accept and go through, because we know You have the bigger picture that we cannot see, and we trust that You work all things together for good to them that love you and are called according to Your purpose.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Hear my Cry oh Lord [Lor]