Barbara grew up under the care of the British government in the 1960s, but when she turned sixteen, she and her newborn son, Simon, became homeless. The state was no longer obligated to provide for her at that age. Barbara wrote to the Queen of England for help and received a response! The Queen compassionately arranged for Barbara to be given a house of her own.
The Queen of England had the right resources to help Barbara, and her compassionate assistance can be seen as a small picture of God’s help. The King of heaven knows all of our needs and sovereignly works out His plans in our lives. As He does, however, He longs for us to come to Him—sharing our needs and other concerns—as part of our loving relationship with Him.
The Israelites brought their need for deliverance to God. They were suffering under the burden of Egyptian slavery and cried out for help. He heard them and remembered His promise: “God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them” (Exodus 2:25). He instructed Moses to bring liberty to His people and declared that He would once again release them “into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey” (3:8).
Our King loves it when we come to Him! He wisely provides what we need, not necessarily what we want. Let’s rest in His sovereign, loving provision.
Why is it important for us to bring our needs to God in prayer? How can you learn to rest in God’s provision—whatever that may be?
INSIGHT
When God introduced Himself to Moses from a burning bush, the bush didn’t burn up (Exodus 3:2). Later Moses would speak of the same God as a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24). Through both Testaments, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jesus uses the image of fire to reveal His resolve to consume what’s worthless—while lovingly protecting, preserving, and perfecting what’s good (1 Corinthians 3:11–15).