Because He hears you.

I love the Lord, because He hears
my voice and my supplications,
Because He has inclined His ear to me,
Therefore I shall call upon Him as long as I live.
Psalm 116:1-2

Do you love the Lord because He hears your voice? I have read this passage maybe 100 times in my life and never truly saw what David was saying until recently. David says, “I love the Lord, because He hears my voice…” If you notice, David does not say, “I love the Lord because He answers my prayers.” He does not say, “I love the Lord because He has done good things for me.” Did the Lord do great things for David? Yes! Did the Lord answer David’s prayers? Absolutely. Yet David declares that he loves the Lord because the Lord hears him.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel like the Lord doesn’t hear my voice. It feels as though I am uttering an empty prayer which is immediately lost the second it escapes from my lips. Most of the time I feel that way it’s because the Lord is being silent or He is not answering my prayers the way I desire Him to answer. But David reminds us that our God always hears us.

Can you picture it? The greatest, most powerful Being in all of this world, the Creator of all things, the only One who can conquer death, calm the stormy sea, and heal the blind, hears you. Imagine the most sovereign King, crowned in full splendor and glory, leaning over His mountainous throne to listen to your whispers. When you open your mouth He hears you. “Therefore,” David says, “I shall call upon Him as long as I live.”

Sometimes life is lonely. Maybe you have experienced loneliness because you moved, changed schools, lost a friend, or just felt isolated or alone. The Creator of the Universe is waiting to hear your voice. He is the only one who will always be there to listen. Don’t stop calling on Him. Even when it feels like He is not there, He is. David tells us that! God hears you, all the time. He may not always answer, but He always hears. Follow David’s words and call upon the Lord for as long as you live. It doesn’t have to be some fancy prayer. Just talk to God. He hears you.

Most importantly, love the Lord because He hears you. Don’t love the Lord based on whether or not He answers your prayers, or whether He does good things for you. Love the Lord because He loves you enough to sit and listen to you. Sometimes we don’t even want to listen to our best friend because we’re tired, or we’ve had a long day. Yet God is always willing to listen. Love Him because He listens; love Him because He hears your voice.