God Loves to Hear from You - The Crosswalk Devotional - August 20

God Loves to Hear from You
By Emma Danzey

“For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” - 1 Peter 3:12

The Eyes of the Lord Are on the Righteous
As I put my 4-month-old son to bed, I turn on the monitor connected to my phone. Throughout the evening, I glance at him. Most of the time, I delight in looking at my precious baby sleeping, not because he needs something. He is so peaceful and beautiful to me. On the other hand, when he’s on the changing table, my eyes are alert, watching to be sure he doesn’t roll off the dresser!

There is a lot of comfort in the verse above. Peter is writing to the suffering body of believers. He is reminding them that God sees them. If my son needs milk or has a bad dream at night, I respond. God, in a perfect and holy way, sees all our needs, even in our humanity and weaknesses. He is watching us, never leaving us, and always listening. Proverbs 15:3 says,

“The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.”

His Ears Are Open to Their Prayer
Sometimes, if I am honest, I would love to cover my ears and roll over when my son cries out in the middle of the night. However, most of the time, he is trying to tell me and my husband something. It’s easy to think God is sick and tired of hearing from us because sometimes we, ourselves, would rather ignore the needs of others. The person who always tells us the same story. The weekly, reappearing struggle that co-worker seems to have. The screaming toddler. It’s hard to be kind, gracious and have a genuine desire to want to listen to others. We can easily place this characteristic on God. However, our Father does not have this attitude.

He adores hearing from us whether we have prayed about it once or one million times. His ears are open to us. He loves to hear from His children. There is no stalling to hear a need. There is no dazing off or muting us out. He cares. He listens. He may not always provide us with the answers we would like, but His heart is pure and perfect through it all. Isaiah 6:5:24 says,

“Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.”

The Face of the Lord is Against Those Who Do Evil.
One thing is sure. The Lord is not encouraging or focused on people who do evil. This verse makes it clear that they are not of concern for him. His face is turned against them. He disapproves. It comforts us that our Lord does not celebrate evil; He is against it.

Even though circumstances surrounding the life of a believer are evil, the Lord never turns his face on them. He is always looking out for them. This can give us great hope whether we just came out of a trial, are in one now, or are headed out of one, He is there. Psalm 34:17 says,

“When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.”

Intersecting Faith and Life:
Do you ever feel like God does not see you or care what you have to say? Have you ever thought that He is tired of hearing from you? Spend time praying and thanking God that He cares for you and loves to hear from you today and share your heart with your Father. Whatever evil you are facing, your God is more significant.

Further Reading:

Emma Danzey’s mission in life stems from Ephesians 3:20-21, to embrace the extraordinary. One of her greatest joys is to journey with the Lord in His Scriptures. She is wife to Drew and mom to Graham. Emma serves alongside her husband in ministry, she focuses most of her time in the home, but loves to provide articles on the Bible, life questions, and Christian lifestyle. Her article on Interracial Marriage was the number 1 on Crosswalk in 2021. Most recently, Emma released Treasures for Tots, (Scripture memory songs) for young children. During her ministry career, Emma has released Wildflower: Blooming Through Singleness, two worship EP albums, founded and led Polished Conference Ministries, and ran the Refined Magazine. You can view her articles on her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com and check out her Instagram @Emmadanzey.