Incline Your Ear: Prayer in Times of Need

Psalm 86 rises out of that deep place where a soul is not playing around with God. David says, “Incline thine ear, oh Lord,” and that is not a polished little line for a quiet religious moment. The text reaches up to the Almighty and says, “I need you to be listening to me, God.” The word “incline” carries that beautiful picture of God leaning in, bending down, getting close enough for the hurting servant to know the cry has been heard.

The Father’s Day question to the children opens the door into that same holy urgency. The child who asks God to help a sister, or to meet pain sitting heavy at home, shows how quickly prayer can move past small talk. The child’s burden reminds the whole church that prayer is not always about little inconveniences or passing wishes. Prayer often comes from the place where distress is tearing at the soul and the heart can only say, “God, help me.”

David’s plea is not casual. His enemies want his very life, and his trouble is not imaginary. Psalm 86 gives language for the moment when a person cannot face the crisis alone and needs the presence of God to hold him steady in the middle of a difficult and holy struggle. The prayer is not, “Lord, give me what I want.” The prayer is, “Lord, lean into my need.”

Prayer, as C. S. Lewis is brought near to say, is about connecting to God. Prayer places the servant in the very hands of God and teaches the soul to listen in the deep places of being. The practice of prayer slows anxieties, centers scattered thoughts, and gives wisdom enough to walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Prayer does not remove every demanding circumstance, but it helps a person live better inside those circumstances.

The memory of a father who knew how to incline his ear gives flesh and blood to Psalm 86. The father who listened made trouble feel navigable, and the loss of that listening presence leaves a tender ache. Yet Psalm 86 points beyond every earthly father, living or gone on to the church triumphant, to the heavenly Father who can still be asked, “Lend me your ears.”

The gift of prayer becomes rest for the weary, peace for the anxious, and a song of praise for the rejoicing. God’s faithfulness does not fail from the rising of the sun to its setting, and mercy is new every morning. The servant may say to the One in the heavens, “Incline your ear to me, oh Lord,” and God’s grace, patience, and wisdom can guide through the valley this day and every day.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Prayer asks God to lean close Prayer in Psalm 86 is not treated like a vague religious exercise. The word “incline” carries the tender picture of God bending down toward a servant in need. David’s cry trusts that the Almighty is not distant from pain, but near enough to hear the exact shape of it. [27:23]
• 2. Children can reveal holy urgency The child’s answer strips prayer of performance and politeness. A small voice can carry a heavy burden, and that burden can speak to the whole church with surprising power. Such prayer teaches that real need often comes before carefully chosen words. [24:42]
• 3. Prayer is not mere wanting David’s plea is larger than asking God to arrange life around preference. His cry rises from distress that is eating at the soul, where only God’s presence can hold a person steady. Prayer becomes less about getting control and more about being held by the One who can be trusted in crisis. [31:19]
• 4. A listening father points upward The memory of a father who knew how to listen becomes a living picture of what it means for God to incline his ear. Earthly fathers may be present, absent, flawed, or gone to the church triumphant, but the longing to be heard remains. Psalm 86 directs that longing toward the heavenly Father who can still receive the deepest trouble of the heart. [38:40]
• 5. Prayer becomes rest, peace, and praise The gift of prayer meets different souls in different seasons. For the weary, prayer can become rest; for the anxious, prayer can become peace; for the rejoicing, prayer can become a song. God’s mercy is not thin or occasional, but new every morning for those who call upon him. [49:28]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [23:36] - A Father’s Day Question
• [23:55] - One Prayer for God to Hear
• [24:42] - A Child’s Heavy Burden
• [27:09] - Psalm 86 Speaks to God’s Ear
• [27:23] - “Incline Thine Ear, Oh Lord”
• [28:16] - Asking God to Lean In
• [30:38] - Prayer Beyond Trivial Requests
• [31:36] - Held in a Holy Struggle
• [32:29] - Prayer Connects the Soul to God
• [33:31] - Prayer Slows Anxieties
• [35:32] - Prayer in Demanding Circumstances
• [36:09] - A Father Who Listened
• [38:40] - Heavenly Father, Lend Me Your Ears
• [48:13] - The Gift of Prayer
• [60:10] - Final Blessing from Psalm 86

1. In Psalm 86:1, what words show the urgency and humility of the prayer, and what need is being named before God? [27:23]
2. What picture is given by the word “incline,” and how does that image help describe the way God listens? [28:39]
3. What examples are given of prayers that rise from deep distress rather than small, passing concerns? [30:38]
4. What different gifts of prayer are named for the weary, the anxious, and the rejoicing? [49:20]

1. Psalm 86:1 asks God to “incline” his ear. What does that suggest about the kind of relationship David believes he has with God, and what does it reveal about how a needy person may approach the Lord? [27:48]
2. Prayer is more than “Lord, give me what I want.” How does that change the way a person understands prayer in a season of crisis or sorrow? [32:24]
3. Psalm 23:4 speaks of walking through the valley of the shadow of death. How does prayer help a person walk through the valley rather than simply demand a quick escape from it? [35:12]
4. Earthly fathers may listen well, listen imperfectly, or be absent altogether. Why does the longing to be heard point so naturally toward the heavenly Father? [39:03]

1. What is one burden in life right now that feels too heavy for polite or surface-level prayer? What would it sound like to bring that need before God plainly and honestly this week? [31:51]
2. Some prayers are really about comfort, convenience, or control. Where is the temptation to pray that way right now, and how might that prayer be reshaped into, “Lord, lean into my need”? [33:07]
3. Prayer can slow anxieties and center scattered thoughts. When anxiety rises, what usually happens first in the heart and mind, and what simple habit of prayer could help make room for God’s peace? [33:51]
4. A child’s burden can be honest, direct, and unguarded before God. Where might there be a need to stop managing words so carefully and simply tell God what hurts? [24:42]
5. For some, prayer needs to become rest; for others, peace; for others, praise. Which of those is most needed in this season, and what might that look like in daily prayer over the next few days? [49:20]
6. God’s mercies are new every morning and his faithfulness does not fail. What would it look like to begin the next morning with that truth before looking at the day’s troubles? [48:03]
7. There are valleys that cannot be walked through alone. Where is there a need today to say, “I cannot face this without you,” and to trust God for grace, patience, and wisdom for the next step? [01:00:21]