Distress as a Divine Invitation to Prayer

"In my distress I cried unto the LORD." Mark the wondrous advantage of trouble—that it makes us call upon God. And mark again the wondrous readiness of mercy, that when we call, He heareth us.

Trouble is often the ladder by which we climb toward the throne of grace. A man in comfort may forget his Maker; but a man in distress remembers that there is One who sits above all circumstances, one who bends His ear to the cry of the afflicted. The merchant loses his ship, and suddenly remembers prayer. The mother loses her child, and her first impulse is to seek the Almighty. Suffering drives us to our knees in a way that prosperity never does.

Blessed are they that mourn while they are travelling the long upward journey from the Galilee of the Gentiles of this lower world to the heavenly Jerusalem, the high and holy city of the saints of God. For these mourners learn early what pilgrims must discover: that this world is not our home, and that our only true comfort lies in communion with the Eternal.

Trouble, therefore, is not a sign of God's displeasure—it is often the token of His love. He sends the storm not to destroy the ship, but to drive the sailor to the harbor. Every cry from a sincere heart reaches the ear of Jehovah, and His mercy stands ready to respond.