The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desire of all who fear him;
he also hears their cry, and saves them.
Psalm 145.18-19

There was this day I experienced about 6 years ago. It was during a time of unbelievable stress. Steve and I had moved to a new town in Florida. We were learning to live with heart disease. The girls were in a new school. There were financial issues to handle. And the list could go on and on.

On this one day in particular, I had driven from our new home in Bradenton back up to Clearwater to go to the dentist. On my way home I was feeling unbelievably overwhelmed. I was at the end of my rope and it seemed these struggles would never end. I was just about to cross the skyway bridge and I remember telling the Lord, "I just can't handle it anymore. I can't go on like this. I don't want to die, but I can't go on." It was one of the most desperate feelings I had ever experienced.

So, freaky thing happened. I flipped on the radio and happened upon a radio preacher (something I don't normally do). The preacher said my words right back to me - verbatim. He said, "if you are at the end of your rope and you just can't handle it anymore, and you can't go on.......that's where God can use you..." He went on to say a bunch of other stuff, but what I remember is pulling off the road at the fishing pier because my tears prevented me from seeing. God was real. He heard my cry. He met me where I was. He heard my cry and saved me. That day is burned into my memory. I went from feeling totally alone to knowing I wasn't alone at all.

Advent Action: Reminisce in your mind about a time when God was there for you and heard your cry. If you haven't experienced that, begin to pray that God would show you his face.