A moment of encouragement from LGS to start your week.

When Your Heart Hurts, Pray

"And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish."
— I Samuel 1:10 NKJV

There are some prayers we pray with confidence and joy. There are others we can barely get out through the tears.

Hannah knew what that felt like.

She carried a deep sorrow in her heart. She desperately wanted a child, and year after year that desire remained unfulfilled. To make matters worse, she was continually provoked because of it. Her pain had become so heavy that Scripture describes her as being in "bitterness of soul."

But notice what Hannah did with her pain.

She prayed.

She didn't pretend everything was fine. She didn't hide her tears. She didn't wait until she had gathered herself together before approaching God.

She came to Him hurting.
She came weeping.
She came exactly as she was.

And there is something important for us to learn from Hannah's prayer: God is not afraid of our broken hearts.

Sometimes we may feel as though we need to have the right words when we pray. We think we need to understand what God is doing or have enough faith to face the situation without tears.

But Hannah shows us something different.

Sometimes faith looks like crying in the presence of God and refusing to walk away from Him.

Maybe you have carried a prayer for a long time.
Maybe there is something you desperately want God to change, but nothing seems to be happening.
Maybe you are carrying disappointment, grief, uncertainty, or a burden that very few people know about.

Take it to the Lord.
Tell Him what hurts.
Tell Him what you're afraid of.
Tell Him what you're hoping for.
And if all you have are tears, bring those too.

Hannah did not know how her story would end when she began praying that day. She simply knew where to take her pain.

That is faith.

Faith isn't always having the answers. Sometimes faith is trusting God enough to pour out your heart before Him when you don't have any answers at all.

Later in the chapter, after Hannah had prayed, Scripture tells us that she went her way, ate, and "her face was no longer sad."

Her circumstances had not changed yet.

But something in Hannah had.

She had placed her burden in the hands of God.

Whatever may be weighing heavily on your heart today, you don't have to carry it by yourself.

Bring it to the One who already knows.
Bring Him the questions.
Bring Him the disappointment.
Bring Him the hurt.
Bring Him the tears.

When your heart hurts, pray.

God is listening.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You that I can come to You just as I am. When my heart is hurting and I don't understand what You are doing, help me to bring my burdens to You instead of carrying them alone. Give me the faith to trust You with the things I cannot change and the prayers that have not yet been answered. Thank You for hearing me, for caring about what concerns me, and for being near when my heart is heavy. Help me to leave my burdens in Your hands and trust You with what comes next. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Let's Get Serious for Jesus.

God Bless
Geff & Sarah