How God Answered My Desperate Cries for Help
Happy new month! I can’t believe it is August already! This year is going by quickly and I love it (please, ask me where I am rushing to?). When it gets to this time of year, I am always filled me with excitement, like a child eagerly waiting to explore a candy store or visiting their favorite amusement park. The reason for my excitement is that my birthday is just around the corner (well, more like five weeks away). Speaking of birthdays - yesterday, I reached out to my cousin who is turning 30 this month. I felt she had been a bit distant lately.
The cause behind her sudden seclusion? The birthday blues. She's grappling with the feeling that certain joys should be gracing her life at this time. “You just don't understand,” she lamented. In response, I said, “what don’t I understand? Haven’t I turned 30 before?” She laughed.
Thankfully, I'm not one of those who wallow in the idea of time slipping away, consumed by a sense of missing out. After all, we have no control for when certain things we desire will happen in our lives. Allow me to borrow the words of someone whose life’s journey resonated with me. She said, “My confidence was in my Father, that all He had for me, will come in His time.”
You won't believe it, but the reason for this article today isn't related to what we've discussed so far. Our focal point for this conversation is prayer. It was during a membership class at church that my pastor shared a thought that deeply resonated with me.
He emphasized that while there are numerous ways to live out our Christian faith, such as delving into the scriptures, attending weekly church services, serving, and more, the true recognition of God's presence in our lives comes through prayer. Prayer stands as our way of acknowledging the existence of God, often entailing our requests for his intervention in our lives, underpinned by our unwavering belief in his capacity to help.
I became aware of my prayers taking on a passive quality. The act of praying started to carry the weight of an obligatory task. Frequently, I caught myself uttering hasty words before bedtime, merely to tick it off my list and indulge in my favorite show before sleep claimed me. It wasn't until I encountered certain difficulties that I came to recognize that God was using these challenges to draw my focus back to him.
For a Christian, a lack of time dedicated to prayer can lead to a wavering of faith and belief in God. As such, God may not appear to be as close to you as the bible claims. He may also not appear to be able to save you from the dire situations you find yourself in on a regular basis. Thus, your perception of God takes the form of a fictitious character who lives in a faraway land to which you will never have access.
Test
I remember the time I had to deal with some internal and external conflicts related to my writing career. Although I had built a robust resume in my few years of doing this professionally, it hadn't amounted to much financial gain. As a result, I began to feel like a failure. In addition, coming from a Nigerian household that esteemed certain fields of study over the others, I felt as though I had let my family down.
One Tuesday in November 2020, I decided to go to the cinema with some friends. While I was deep in the screenplay, one of them happened to check her phone and discovered a slew of missed calls from my brother. She showed it to me, and I immediately looked for my phone; fearful that something had gone horribly wrong. When I found it, I saw that my brother and father had also tried to reach me. I returned the call to my father, and he said, “I have been calling you since, where have you been?” “I am out with my friends and didn't realize my phone was ringing.” I responded.
“You have a job interview tomorrow, and you went out with your friends?” In my mind, I asked myself, “what interview?” Aside from the fact that I had no prior knowledge of the interview, I did not want a job for which I was not qualified or interested. After the details of the job description were revealed, I turned down the opportunity.
In November 2021, the above scenario popped up in my mind when I found myself in the same situation - jobless, clientless, full of dreams but no opportunities to realize them. It instilled in me a sense of despondency, prompting me to ask God for help. Who else was I going to cry to?
Prayer
I began to pray earnestly. I poured out my heart to God like never before. I needed him to intervene like he had done for me in the past, or at least like the stories of old we read in the bible. I encouraged myself through scriptures like, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me? (Jeremiah 32:27).
Then on my extremely broke days I remembered scriptures like, “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:5).
Answer
Some days later, at about 2 a.m., I found myself fully awake and restless in my bed. Seeking solace, I turned to an Adele interview I found on YouTube. Observing the accomplished artist share her life journey reminded me that, I too, could make good use of my God-given talents.
A few minutes into watching the interview, a message appeared on my phone. When I picked it up I noticed it was from someone I had worked with almost three years ago when I was still employed in the corporate world. The message, which included a heart emoji, said, “You came to mind today.” I waited until the morning to respond because I doubted the woman remembered who I was. We stopped communicating when we finished working on her project.
After I sent my reply, she called me. Sensing the skepticism in my voice, she relayed little details about me to prove that she knew who I was. Once I relaxed my guard, we spoke like two long-lost friends who reconnected after a long time apart. To spare you the lengthy details of our conversation, the true reason for our reconnection was revealed. “I saw you in my dream, and when that happens, I usually reach out to the person to see how they are and to pray for them.” I was surprised.
She went on to say, “God will meet you at your point of need, and this year will end much better for you than it began. I'm not sure what you've been praying about, but please know that God remembers you.” That was when I started to lose it. How did she find out I was in distress? How did she know I needed the year to end better than it started?
If that was the end of the conversation, it was enough for me to know that God heard my prayers. But that wasn't the end of it. This woman then offered me the opportunity to work with her on some major projects over the following months. If I had any doubts about God's existence before, this experience completely disproved them. I'm still in awe as I write this, and I hope I never get out of it.
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I wrote this lengthy piece with the intent of offering solace and encouragement to those who are grappling with difficulties and sensing a lack of response from God to their prayers. Much like Hagar's experience, who found herself abandoned in the wilderness after fleeing her mistress Sarah (Abraham's wife), we too may encounter moments of isolation and uncertainty.
However, it's essential to draw inspiration from Hagar's story, for in her most vulnerable moment, God's voice reached out to her. He provided reassurance that all will be well for both her and her unborn child. In return, she gave the Lord a new name: “You are a God of seeing,” (what we popularly know as EL Roi) for she said, “Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.”” (Genesis 16:13, ESV).
Certainly, God's presence remains unwavering even amid our most trying moments. It's true that the difficulties we encounter can sometimes obscure this truth from our view. Nevertheless, it's crucial to keep in mind that his constant companionship persists, even when the path ahead is plagued by challenges. Learning to place our trust in his divine timing is also crucial. Although the manner and timing of his responses lie beyond our control, be rest assured that he is with us.
When a project I was working on fell through one month before this woman reached out to me, I said to myself: “Don't worry, God will take care of you,” without even knowing how that would happen. But he did just that. So, don't be discouraged; God knows your name, address, and contact information. He knows exactly how to reach you and who to contact to help you. This woman reached out to me all the way from Australia - can you imagine?
In conclusion, I leave you with this thought: Every person has who (or what) they revere and dedicate themselves to. Yet, when faced with challenges and trials, the ultimate litmus test for the true God emerges. It is the God who genuinely responds to supplications in accordance with his divine plan and purpose, that is God. Elijah said to the followers of Baal in 1 Kings 18:24: “And you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, he is God.”
Have you ever found yourself in a desperate situation and God came to your rescue? Or are you currently facing a difficulty that seems like there is no way out? I’d like to hear from you. Kindly respond to this email, or leave your comments below. If this piece resonated with you, it will also resonate with others. Please do me a favor and share it.
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