Human Response 697: Call upon the Lord

Psalm 17:6 I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline ear unto me, and hear my speech.

In the midst of troubles, David’s first response is to pray. He calls upon the Lord for two reasons: he needs His help, and he knows God will listen and answer. He is always nearby and ready to hear.

Besides being in need, two things are required for believing prayer: believing that the Lord can answer our prayer and that He will. The Gospel tells that the Lord has the ability and power to help us and that He has the desire and the compassion to hear our prayer. So we pray in Jesus’ strong and loving name. We pray “Our Father,” believing He loves like a perfect father, and “in heaven,” believing He is almighty.

We trust the Lord to hear our speech, whether spoken aloud, quietly whispered, or just thinking in our heart. We pray because God promises to hear. All we need to know is that God cares. And Jesus send the Holy Spirit into our hearts to pray for us and grant the faith to believe God is both great and good.