God pays attention!
by Pastor Peter Bean
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‘My God, pay attention and hear me. Open your eyes and see all the terrible things that have happened to us’ (Daniel 9:18a).
Are you beginning to notice a theme? Pray what you like and as much as you like, but it’s not your prayer, nor your way of living that sways the Lord. It’s God’s mercy.
God knows, without a doubt, that many of us could pray this prayer. Some of you will have prayed very similarly at some stage this year. What, with disastrous fires, then floods in some areas, then COVID-19 with its resulting lockdowns, church closures, death of loved ones, border closures, job losses, and so on. How many of us have possibly said or thought, ‘Our lives have been ruined’? Which of us couldn’t speak of ‘the terrible things that have happened’? We want you, God, to pay attention!
And God has – not because of our entreaties, but because God is God. And because of mercy. We can’t always see it, and mercy can sometimes seem a long way off. But God’s mercy is present. In our lives, our prayers, and the answers to our prayers. And, of course, the answers are not always what we want. But they are sufficient. Many years later, the author wrote: ‘I will not send more than you handle. My grace is sufficient for you’.
So, rest in that grace. Pray your prayers, knowing God hears and answers because of the wonderful gift of mercy and grace.
Thank you, God, for the freedom to ask for your attention. Remind us that you always attend to us. Thank you for your mercy and grace. Amen.
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