January 29, 2026
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. 19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.
Prayer is not always the automatic response for the Christian. For most of us, we must be reminded to pray and even have to fight ourselves to actually do it. Why is this the case? Why do we continue to struggle? Our passage today will reveal the heart of the matter.
When we read these verses carefully, we can see that there is one specific kind of relationship that the Lord is determined to have with His people. He desires a true relationship wherein both parties are committed to an undefiled level of love and loyalty. In other words, there is no deceit or pretending in that relationship. It is a pure and genuine connection. This is the kind of relationship the Lord values and blesses. He is not blindly investing His time in us all the while being ignorant of the true state of our hearts. Nor are we able to fake our love for Him without Him already knowing it. He searches every heart and knows each of His children far better than they know themselves (Jeremiah 17:10). Therefore, God is not looking for people who want to use Him for selfish desires but rather for children who joyfully love calling on Him.
The passage teaches us that God will only draw near to the sincere child who is willing to call on Him in truth. What does that mean? It means that God knows when we are simply praying for false and pretentious reasons. He knows deep in our hearts if we truly value the privilege of prayer. He knows ultimately if we even care about spending time with Him. Therefore, to those of us struggling with prayer, it has nothing to do praying in of itself. It is that somehow we have found ourselves stuck in a religious cycle forgetting that we actually need to love God.
Why do we dare to call on Him if we don't have any affection for Him? Why would we remember to pray if we have believed there is no immediate need of His presence? We likely are going about life as though we can manage it all on our own. Perhaps God has become an afterthought in the busyness of our lives. As time slips by, we tell ourselves that there is no real need to connect with God and that we should only go to Him when it is absolutely necessary. It is precisely this tragic thinking that traps us into a lifeless faith and a cold-hearted devotion.
The Bible is clear. He will only fulfill the desires of those who fear Him. And although many people may be crying out to God, only those who truly worship Him shall be heard. The question today is not, ‘Do I have the time or energy to pray?’ The question is, ‘Do I have any desperate longing and ache for the presence of Jesus? I pray you consider that today.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, help me to see that truly I am nothing without you. Your love is better than life and yet I have given my energy and soul to lesser things. You are the one true desire of my heart. Teach me to have joy in calling on your precious name every single day. Amen.