The Invitation

By: Debra Weiss, RTF Staff Writer

I feel like God isn’t listening to my prayers.
I don’t think God really answers prayer these days…
I’ve given up praying; God isn’t interested in my problems.

I’ve talked to the teens that have uttered these statements. Once optimistic, they’ve been beaten down by life. A parentsʼ divorce, chronic illness, surgery, depression, addictions, eating disorders, the death of a loved one…the list of their burdens is endless.

Often when I listen to these teens, they sound so alone, as though they’ve been forgotten by the entire world. Somehow while they were struggling to stay afloat, Satan convinced them that God wasn’t listening to their prayers.

Do these lies sound familiar to you too? Lies like God doesn’t listen to your prayers, God doesn’t have time for you, or God isn’t interested in your life?

Yet that clearly goes against everything the Bible teaches. In fact the topic of prayer is mentioned over four hundred times in the Bible. It must be an important topic to God since He chose to include it in His Word over four hundred times!

Perhaps the most beautiful invitation to pray is found in Matthew 11:28. “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”

With arms wide open, God extends this invitation to each of us. He isn’t talking to just the most popular, the smartest or the prettiest. He was talking to everyone.

He extends this invitation to those who are overwhelmed and overworked, those who have seen too much evil in this world, those who’ve known betrayal and are tired of trusting again and again.

He is extending this offer to teens like you and me.

Next time Satan whispers, God isnʼt interested in you or your problems, read this verse. Choose to trust that God is still a burden-bearing God.