I cried to the Lord with my voice,
And He heard me from His holy hill.  Psalm 3:4 (NKJV)

It’s okay to share your heart with God. When things are going wrong, do you ever feel like you can’t complain or tell the Lord how you really feel? You can.  The Bible gives us clear examples of God’s people sharing their hearts with Him.

Let’s look at Moses.  In Exodus 32, Moses spent 40 days fasting on the mountain with God.  When he came back down to the people, Moses found them in all kinds of trouble. God wanted to blot the Israelites off the planet.   But Moses pleaded with God…

Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” So the Lord relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people. Exodus 32:11-14 (NKJV)

First Moses asked God, why?  Then he reminded Him of His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  And guess what?  God relented from the harm He had planned!  Isn’t that amazing?!  All because Moses prayed and shared His heart with God.

Let’s look at another example from the New Testament.  Jesus was so busy healing and teaching God’s people, that He didn’t have much extra time.  Then into His tiring schedule came a Gentile woman, begging for healing for her daughter.

 Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.”

But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.”

But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!”

But He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.”

And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”

Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour. Matthew 15:21-28

This was a Gentile woman, not even one of the Israelites, who believed that Jesus had the power to save her daughter.  She was not discouraged by the disciples.  She was not discouraged when Jesus said He was sent for Israel.  Instead, she worshiped Jesus and begged for His help.  And when Jesus still questioned her, the woman had a ready reply, that even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the master’s table.  What awesome faith!

Today’s TEA CUPP:  Share your heart with Jesus.  As you have your tea time today, read God’s Word and let Him speak first, then use a Psalm or the words of this Gentile lady, to plead your case with the Lord. And may Jesus say to you, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.”

Hear my cry, O God;
Attend to my prayer.
From the end of the earth I will cry to You,
When my heart is overwhelmed;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:1-2 (NKJV)

I pour out my complaint before Him;
I declare before Him my trouble. Psalm 142:2 (NKJV)

Scripture from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.