He Hears You

Today’s Bible readings are Exodus 2:11-3:22, Matthew 17:10-27, Psalm 22:1-18, & Proverbs 5:7-14

Exodus 2:23-25

²³ Years passed, and the king of Egypt died. But the Israelites continued to groan under their burden of slavery. They cried out for help, and their cry rose up to God. ²⁴ God heard their groaning, and he remembered his covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ²⁵ He looked down on the people of Israel and knew it was time to act.

It is easy to read this & forget to connect the parts that we have already read. We see here that years have passed. Years can really go by slow. It can seem like an eternity when we are waiting on God to fulfill one of His promises.

I want to be precise here; it wasn’t just a few years we are talking about. 3 years would be enough to try most of our faith beyond anything we have ever had to endure. 10 years would be enough to make most people forget about the promise all together. We are talking way beyond both of these numbers. We are talking 400 years.

I don’t know if it was awful slavery for the entire time. There was a season of great favor among the people while Joseph & the original Pharaoh was alive. Yet, when they died that favor was soon forgotten. The blessing was removed & it was replaced by a heavy burden of true slavery. I’m sure that this was a gradual transition at first. It then became horrific.

During this time the people of Israel still passed down through their children the ancient stories of the God of Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob. They knew of this great God who blessed their forefathers & made them great. They told of a day when they were free men & women under this great God’s blessing. It moved them to cry out to Him once again.

I can only imagine that it must have felt like their cries where not getting heard. They surely went through some of the same things that we do when we cry out for God helps. But at just the right time God came through for them. I imagine it was pure desperation that kept them crying during this period. The thought of being rescued by God was the only hope they had. That hope did not disappoint them.

We will have times in our lives where we will have to stand & fight the good fight of faith as well. There may be months, & even years, that go by as wait for God to fulfill His promises. I want to remind you that just because there is no immediate result doesn’t mean that your cry wasn’t heard or that He said no. It just simply means that now we are in a place of waiting & resting.

Don’t think for a minute that God has overlooked your cry for help with:

1.     Your lost children

2.     Your backslidden husband

3.     Your angry & resentful wife

4.     Your dead end job

5.     Your health condition

6.     Your deliverance from alcohol or tobacco

7.     Your unforgiving heart

God has heard your cry & He knows that it is time to act. Just remember that HE IS FAITHFUL! I have learned that when it seems like nothing is happening, those are the times when God is at His greatest work. We may just not see what He is doing in the realm of the Spirit.

There are many examples of times when it looked like God had been sleeping on the job but He came through at just the right time.

1.     Abraham waiting to have a son

2.     Abraham offering up Isaac

3.     Joseph becoming 2^nd in command in Egypt

4.     Noah building the arc waiting for it to rain

These are just to mention a few that we have read about thus far. As we read throughout the rest the year we will see that this is a pattern with God. He never gets in a hurry & is always on time every time.

I am praying for each person who is reading this blog. I am asking that God will increase your faith as you wait on Him. He is not going to forsake you in your moment of struggle. It may seem like you are alone right now BUT HE IS WITH YOU! It may seem like He is ignoring you BUT HE IS LISTENING!  It may seem like He doesn’t care what you’re going through BUT IS CARRYING YOU!

I leave you with this beautiful promise from His word:

1 John 3:20-23

²⁰ Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything.

²¹ Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. ²² And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.

²³ And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us.

I can sense the heaviness of many hearts but I can also sense the overwhelming presence of His great love. Quiet yourself for a moment & be still. You will find that He is nearing now than ever. Welcome Him into you situation right now. HE CARES!!!

Pastor Richard Schlotter