We have said several times, being part of this world means we’re going to be part of struggles. We’re going to be part of times of difficulties. Times of loss. Times of heartache where there seems like no hope. This includes times where people that we trust harm us in ways we can never imagine. This includes times where we lose loved ones when it seemed like everything was fine. At some point, we need to realize that we need God to step in. We need God to restore us. We need to focus on the one who can heal us…instead of focusing on what has hurt us. And I think that begins with prayer.
In the Bible, we learn about Job. We learn about his struggles. We learn about how he handled loss. When everything seemed hopeless. He lost so much. Possessions. Health. Even his children. When all of this happened, God gave him instructions to simply pray. Read that again: God told him to pray. Which is what he did. He prayed. Which is what we all should do. God knows our hearts. He knows what we are going through. He knew what Job was facing. And he was waiting to restore him. Just as he is waiting to restore us in our times of need. But it starts with us. It starts with us praying.
It’s easy for us to wonder why we need to pray if God knows what we’re going through. You may not like my answer. But this is what I believe. I think prayer signals that we are submitting ourselves to God. I think prayer signals that we are humbling ourselves before God. I think that prayer tells God that we are focusing on him. That we are focusing on being restored and not on what caused the pain. Sometimes things happen to us that are out of our control. Sometimes we don’t understand why. Sometimes they make no sense. No matter what is going on, let’s remember this, we have a God who loves us and understands our circumstances. And he is there to restore us and rebuild us. But we must turn to him first. He’s waiting. Because he loves us. He always has. He always will.
