Grandma B. needs a cane and a friendly arm to hold in order to walk. Recently, I helped her get from church to the Bible study room. It was slow progress. Slow enough for her to recite several stanzas of “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” in a conversational sort of way, between painful steps. She wasn’t about to bear any “needless pain” when she could take even this short walk to God in prayer. 

Grandma B. shakes her head when she tells about a nephew who sat with her in the hospital. “Your doctor doesn’t seem very confident,” her nephew said, “—he was praying before your operation!” Her nephew didn’t appreciate the privilege of prayer or the power of God who listens to prayer. Oh, what peace he was forfeiting!

What peace are you forfeiting by failing or forgetting—or fearing—to pray? How needless! “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry” (1 Peter 3:12). When we cry out, Jesus doesn’t turn away at the reek of our sin. He doesn’t yawn over our problems. He doesn’t dither over how to deliver us. With the alert love of a mom attuned to her child’s cry, Jesus responds. He deposits our sins at his cross, lifts our cumbersome load of care, and supports our every step with the strong arm of his Word. 

Whatever burdens you have, take them to the Lord in prayer. 

As Grandma B. knows with all her might—you will find a solace there.