The Word of God bears witness to the fact that afflictions teach us to bend our knees and cry out to the Lord in all our problems and troubles.
“Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word” (Psalm 119:67).
“I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right, and that in faithfulness You have afflicted me” (119:75).
In the last verse, David is saying, “Lord, I know why you afflicted me. You saw that when all was going well, I went astray and became very careless, so you allowed trouble to come upon me. You knew it would drive me to my knees and bring me back to brokenness. My affliction was evidence of your faithfulness to me!”
We need to understand something about the heart of God — he hurts when we hurt. He feels our affliction with us, no matter what it is. “In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the Angel of His Presence saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bore them and carried them all the days of old” (Isaiah 63:9-10).
The Lord is moved whenever his children cry out to him from affliction. “[Israel] cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. So God heard their groaning” (Exodus 2:23-24). Israel’s cry moved God’s heart. Every time they were afflicted, God hurt with them. The Bible tells us that even when Israel sinned against the Lord and misery fell on them, “His soul could no longer endure the misery of Israel” (Judges 10:16).
Many people battle awful bondages in their lives and temptations in them rage daily. Yet, I say to all such people, “God cares!” Yes, he knows the misery you endure and he alone has the power to deliver you. In every battle, he is teaching you to run to the cross and cry out to him for deliverance!