When we have been praying for long periods of time and God does not seem to be answering, this is when the darkness presses in. The enemy begins to whisper lies to us, inviting us to think that perhaps God does not even hear our prayers or God does not love us.

The enemy wants you to feel alone and to stop praying. He wants you to give up. He wants to keep you stuck in his darkness and confusion. He wants you to lose your faith and joy.

Don’t believe his lies.

I have journals full of prayers I prayed during my separation with my husband. At the time, it felt like none of them were being answered, and yet now I can reread my journals many years later and clearly see the hand of God in my life. I see that God answered some of my prayers with a clear no. And to be honest, I don’t like to be told no. But I also see how when I cried out to God and said, “Lord, help me. Lord, sustain me. Lord, please provide. Lord, give me wisdom. Lord, protect my children, and, Lord, give me the strength for another day,” God heard my cries.

Relief was not always immediate. But in time the Lord did help me, he did sustain me, he did provide, he did give me the wisdom I needed, he did protect my children, and he did give me the strength to stand another day.

Let me assure you, God hears your prayers.

God Is For You

I grew up in a strong, loving Christian home. My parents lived out their faith every day, and they taught me and my sisters how to walk with the Lord. But it wasn’t a perfect home, where my parents told us what to do and we girls just obediently did all that they asked. 

There were times when I felt my parents were the strictest parents in the world, and I would tell my parents this with the hope of changing their minds, but it didn’t seem to bother them or make them waver in the slightest. They loved me too much to let me run amuck, and this made me feel secure. I knew I was loved.

I did not always understand my parents’ ways, but one thing I always knew was that my parents were for me. They could see the big picture, and so everything they did was out of their love for me. Sometimes we don’t understand God’s ways, but one thing we can be sure of is God is for us and he loves us.

God Sees Every Tear That Falls

In Psalm 56, David was on the run from his enemies, and sleep was not coming easily for him. Instead, he was tossing and turning and crying at night, and he wrote this about God:

“You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.” Psalm 56:8–9

David knew that God saw his sleepless nights.

David knew that God saw every tear that fell.

And David knew that even though he was in deep distress. . . God was for him.

Friend, I do not know what difficulties you are facing today or how many tears you have cried or how many sleepless nights you have faced, but this I know—God is for you!

But What about Your Tears?

I did not used to be one who cried very often openly. My friends and family would tell you they rarely saw me cry until after my husband left me, and then I literally could not control my tears. I cried at family dinners, at coffee nights with my girl friends, at church during worship times, at the grocery store, at the bank, at the gym, and then in private too, like in my car, bed, and shower. 

It was a very humbling time, and yet God used those tears. While the darkness seemed to swallow me up as I cried, there was strength on the other side of my tears. I often felt so much better after a good cry. God taught me it’s okay to cry. God created us with tear ducts so we could express emotions that words cannot express. And, friend, I want to remind you your tears are safe with Jesus.

As we read through the book of Psalms, we see David crying out to God over and over and declaring that God is his refuge, his strength, his rock, and his unshakable fortress. That is our God! He is our refuge and strength. We can trust him through every valley and struggle. God is for you.

Tears are a part of life that even Jesus experienced. The shortest verse in the Bible is John 11:35, and it says, “Jesus wept.”

Ecclesiastes says that crying is a part of the cycle of life: “[There is] a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” (Ecclesiastes 3:4). And in Romans 12:15, we are commanded to cry: “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.”

The first words of Jesus after he rose from the dead were said to a woman. Jesus said, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” (John 20:15). Jesus knew the answer, and he was there to reassure her. His presence helped her know that everything was going to be okay and that she did not need to cry anymore.

One of the most comforting verses in Scripture is found in Revelation when it speaks of heaven. It says, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:4 niv). In heaven, our tears will be over forever! And if we return to the writings of David, we see in Psalm 56 he says, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid” (vv. 3–4).

Notice how David went from being afraid to declaring, “I will not be afraid!” What settled his anxious thoughts? Putting his trust in God.

Is there something keeping you up at night? Trust God.

Is there something that is causing you to give way to fear? Trust God.

Push out the darkness.

Stand in the light.

I know that sometimes it doesn’t feel like God is for us.

Just like when I was a kid, and my parents would tell me to do things I did not want to do, I could not see then how much my parents were for me. But now, looking back, I can see clearly. I was loved.

You may not be able to see the big picture right now, but you can trust God and release whatever burdens you are carrying to him. He loves you.

Grab your copy of Still Standing, here.