“Why did God send the ants?” Parker asked his brother at the dinner table.

With five-year-old wisdom, Garrett quickly returned, “You know that God can hear you. He can even hear you in Disney World.”

In his deep, raspy voice, Parker shouts, “God! Why did you send the ants?!”

Oh, to be as bold as a three-year-old.

Have a question?

What question do you want to ask God today? Do you need to cry out in agony? Do you want to shout, demanding an answer?

As I write this, I am surrounded by a community that is reeling after an unimaginable tragedy, claiming the life of a beloved teenager and causing unspeakable anguish in the others involved.

Another family embarks on a cancer journey, soon to begin chemo and surgery. Still another deals with the unexpected loss of a job. A husband and wife struggle to hold their marriage together, while others are making the hard decisions to care for elderly parents.

Need answers?

There is a new song that launched today. Honestly, We Just Need Jesus by Terrian. The title of the song says it all. We just need Jesus. To get us through the heartbreak, the uncertainty, the pain and the loss, Jesus is our answer.

While searching for something else, I ran across the ant story today. I had jotted it down shortly after the little-boy dinner conversation. I share it not to downplay the severity of loss and pain, but to remind us that God hears what comes from not only our lips, but from our hearts as well.

Seek the Lord. He hears. He’s with us in the middle of chaos and pain. He gets trauma and grief. He understands hopelessness and anxiety.

Jesus takes our hand and walks beside us. He is trustworthy and he will never fail us.

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. Psalm 145:18 (NIV)

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