Touching The Heart Of God

by LaBreeska Hemphill

A few years back, Joel and I were passing through another state and stopped by to visit a pastor friend and his family. They had a lovely daughter, Sue (not her real name) whose life was at a standstill and seemed to be going nowhere.

Sue had born a child out of wedlock who at the time was four years old and they were still living with her parents. When we arrived, Sue had just found out that her hopes and plans had been dashed again. The apartment that she thought she had rented would not allow children, and also her job was in question.

My heart went out to that sweet girl. We had known and loved her all of her life. It was plain to see that this last bit of news was too much. She was about to drown in despondency.

When we started to leave that evening I took Sue aside privately. I asked if she had prayed about her situation. Surprisingly she hadn’t. The look on her face told me that she had never thought about it.

I hugged her and said, “Sue, as soon as Joel and I leave, I want you to find a private place to pray. Turn you tears to the Lord and this is what I want you to say to Him: “Lord, I have made a mess of my life and I can’t fix it, but you can. I’ve done all I know to do and nothing is working. Father, please help me!"

I could have prayed for Sue right then but it was time for her to call upon the Lord and find Him to be that true and faithful friend that she had been taught about all of her life. About two months passed. One day Joel and I came in from a trip and found a message on our answering machine. It was Sue’s dad. He said “Brother Joel we are trying to plan a wedding, Sue is getting married and we want to know when you two can come to do the honors.” When we called him back he excitedly told us the story.

Just a week or so after our last visit a nice looking young man showed up at their church. He was a Christian and was visiting different churches hoping to find a Christian girl to date. He and Sue hit it off from the start, they fell in love and now wedding bells were about to ring. Sue’s miracle doesn’t end there. They had a big church wedding and his family gave them a six-week honeymoon in England as a wedding present.

I am glad to report that today, many years later, that darling couple is still happily married with a family of their own and still serving the Lord.

Sue found the heart of God when she cried out to Him in total helplessness. She was like so many women in the Bible, who came to the end of themselves.

There was Sarah who made a mess of things when she brought Hagar, the bondwomen, into the picture. As a result Ishmael was born to Abraham and there has been strife between their descendants until this day! But what warms my heart and brings a mist to my eyes is, after all of her mistakes, God took up for Sarah. His compassionate heart was touched by her pain when she found Ishmael mocking little Isaac at his birthday party. She implored Abraham to get rid of Hagar and Ishmael but the thought grieved him and I’m not sure that he would have gone along with Sarah’s wishes if God hadn’t come on the scene. God said unto Abraham:

“....In all that Sarah hath said unto thee, harken unto her voice...and Abraham rose up early in the morning...and sent her (Hagar and the child) away...” (Genesis 21:9-14).

During my Bible studies I came across a Scripture that shows the heart of God as much than any other. It shows that we have a Father who will take up for us when we think that we are alone.

“Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. If thou afflict them in any way, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; and my wrath shall burn.... (God speaking) (Exod. 22:22-24).

I found this Scripture at least four times in the Bible and there are possibly more. It shows how aware God is of us when we are in distress. Hanna is another prime example of a desperate woman crying to God in her sorrow.

“And she (Hannah) was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept bitterly...and said, O Lord of host, if thou wilt look upon the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me...” (I Sam. 1:10-12).

Then the 19th verse says:

“And the Lord remembered her.”

Jesus said, “...your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him” (Matt. 6:8). He knows, but he wants us to show faith enough to ask.

James, the half brother of Jesus said, “...ye have not, because ye ask not” (James 4:2).

You might say, where was God when I was hurting? Let’s let the Bible tell us where he was and is.

“For thus saith the high and lofty one who inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy. I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones”
(Isaiah 57:15).

When I was broken and contrite (repentant) and going through a severe trial the Lord spoke to me through this Scripture. He let me know that He was sharing in my pain; He was touched by my tears and that He would move His hand in my situation.

If we could get a glimpse of the great big, wonderful, heart of God, it would be easy for us to reach out to Him in our pain and believe Him for results. I have done that many times, and so can you!