The Dirt Path Sermon Podcast
The Dirt Path Sermon Podcast is where faith meets real life, offering down-to-earth sermons that dig deep into the Scriptures while connecting timeless biblical truths with the challenges of everyday living. Each episode invites you to walk the dirt paths of the Bible, discovering how ancient wisdom speaks to modern hearts. Whether you’re seeking inspiration, guidance, or a deeper understanding of God’s word, this podcast is your companion on the journey of faith. Tune in for honest, relatable messages that encourage you to grow in your walk with God.
The Dirt Path Sermon Podcast
If you are wondering, God is listening
Have you ever felt like your prayers are met with silence? Like God isn’t hearing you? You’re not alone. The Israelites cried out in their suffering, and for a time, it seemed like nothing changed. But God heard them. He remembered His promise. And He was already at work.
We dive into Exodus 2:23-25 to see how God responds when His people cry out. We’ll also hear an incredible true story of a child’s prayer answered before it was even spoken.
God hears you. God understands. God is moving—even when it feels like He isn’t. Will you trust Him in the waiting?
Linkoln shares his story on why he started coming to Ravenna Church of the Nazarene and shares why you should consider doing the same.
Ravenna Church of the Nazarene
530 Main Street, Ravenna, KY 40472
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IF YOU ARE WONDERING IF GOD IS LISTENING, HE IS
There was a missionary in Africa who shared a story about a mother who died at their facility. She died after giving birth to a premature baby. They tried to improvise an incubator using a hot water bottle, but the only water bottle they had was beyond repair. So they asked the children at the mission to pray for the baby and for her sister. One of the children prayed, “Dear God, please send a hot water bottle today. Tomorrow will be too late because then the baby will die. And Lord, send a doll for the sister so she won’t feel so lonely.” That afternoon a package arrived. Can you guess what was in the package? A hot water bottle and a doll.
We all have come across stories of answered prayers like that. Some of us have even lived them out. But then there are times in our lives when we wonder if God is listening. We have cried out, but there is only silence. Like those children praying for the hot water bottle, Israel was in a place of suffering, longing for relief. They cried out, and today we see how God responded…
Exodus 2:23-25(CEB):
23 A long time passed, and the Egyptian king died. The Israelites were still groaning because of their hard work. They cried out, and their cry to be rescued from the hard work rose up to God. 24 God heard their cry of grief, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25 God looked at the Israelites, and God understood.
This is the word of God
For the people of God
Thanks be to God
The Israelites had come to Egypt, way back during the life of Jacob during a severe famine in Canaan, saved through his son Joseph who had become governor in Egypt. But Jacob, Joseph, and everyone involved during that time died. Generations later, the Israelites are enslaved. It started off as forced labor, but then it graduated to Pharaoh killing off the baby boys.
God had already placed their deliverer, Moses in the house of Pharaoh. But rather than use his political influence, Moses killed an Egyptian in anger. Moses thought he could deliver Israel his way, but God had a better plan. Even though Moses fled to Midian, God was preparing him for something greater. Now, Moses was Midian, far from Egypt. So I am sure the Israelites felt abandoned like no one heard their prayers.
Verse 23 says, “A long time passed, and the Egyptian king died. The Israelites were still groaning because of their hard work. They cried out, and their cry to be rescued rose to God.” The king changed, but the situation did not. When it says the people cried out, it was not necessarily a cry directed toward God. It was from their situation's agony, hopelessness, and a desire for relief. Even if this cry was not directed toward God, God heard it.
Moving onto verse 24, it reads, “God heard their cry of grief, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” God heard them! He heard them and remembered the promise He made with their forefathers. Now, it is not like God forgot about this promise or the Israelites, although I am sure it felt like it. This is God hearing and preparing to act on His promise.
“God looked at the Israelites,” it says in verse 25, “and God understood.” The Israelites could not help themselves. Moses had tried to help them but failed. But God had a promise to them, and He was going to help them. If we continue on in the story, God powerfully demonstrates His presence to the Israelites and the Egyptians. The Egyptians would be utterly defeated and His people miraculously delivered. Even though the people had cried out because they felt abandoned, God was still with them. His silence was not His approval of their situation, nor did it mean He was absent. God was there and He heard them.
What does this teach us? The Israelites cried out, not even directed at God, wanting their situation to change. They felt alone and abandoned like God was silent. But God was already working. Believe it or not, the Israelites crying out was a sign that God was moving.
In Mark 10:46-52, we read about a man named Bartimaeus who was blind. He was begging in the streets when he heard Jesus was passing through. Bartimaeus began crying out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Over and over, Bartimaeus cried out. The crowd tried to silence him, but Bartimaeus cried out even louder. Jesus heard him, called him forward, and healed Bartimaeus of his blindness. Though Bartimaeus could not see Jesus, and even though all he could do was cry out, Jesus was already moving toward him! Just as Israel’s groans moved God to act, Bartimaeus’ persistence moved Jesus to respond. Their cries signaled they were ready to receive divine help. Divine help was already in motion.
God’s timing is perfect, even when it feels delayed. Galatians 4:4-5 says, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son.” The world was groaning under sin and the oppression of the Law, which had no power to free. When humanity’s desperation reached its peak, God sent Jesus. Israel had the assurances of God’s promise to their forefathers, but at just the right time, God delivered the promise. But what is missed, God heard the groaning, yet was already working on these promises!
Whatever you are suffering through right now, God knows. God cares. God hears every prayer sent His way and every tear that falls. Even though you know all the Sunday school answers, all the Bible verses that tell us to wait upon the Lord, in the moment it is impossible to not groan under the oppression of what is happening. I know it can feel like a cliché when we hear ‘God hears you,’ but the truth is, He does. And even if it doesn’t feel like it right now, I promise you—He is moving. GOD HEARS YOU! GOD UNDERSTANDS! GOD IS MOVING! Through all of what seems like His silence, God is moving. The Israelites had the promise God made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. As great as that promise was, the promise we have through Jesus is greater! Trust in God’s faithfulness, even if you cannot feel it, even if you are struggling to believe it. Hold onto your hope.
Remember the story I shared in the beginning about the premature baby, the sister, and the praying children? That day God, answered their desperate prayer for a hot water bottle and a doll. Do you know how those things arrived? Through the mail. Mail takes a day or so at minimum to be processed and delivered. How many days before that prayer was offered was that package mailed out? God was already working and moving before! Just as that missionary did not see it, just as the Israelites did not see it, and just blind Bartimaeus did not see it, God already had their answered prayer in the process. And I know God has the answer to your prayer in the process.
When you feel unheard, God is listening. The silence you are sensing is not His absence, but God being busy at work for you. When you feel forgotten, God remembers you and His promises. When you feel unseen, God sees and understands.
Psalm 34:17 says, “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles.” What are you waiting for? Maybe today, you need to cry out like Israel. Maybe today, you need to be persistent like Bartimaeus. God is inviting you to trust that He is already working. Will you bring your burdens to Him?
