Some people are internal processors. They run thoughts through their minds and at times find it difficult to verbally express what’s on their hearts.

At times, I wish I were that way. To the contrary, I struggle with keeping it all inside. As a verbal processor, I repeat instructions aloud to make sure I understand them. And I express my thoughts verbally as a way of sorting through them. To my husband, that’s exhausting at times. For me, it’s essential. To hold it in is to put a stopper on my heart and I feel I will suffocate. Until pent up feelings eventually blow, like an eruption of emotion that can be overwhelming to those I love the most. In the aftermath of a gush of words, there can sometimes be regret.

But God is not threatened by my words—or yours. And He’s not irritated by our silence, either. He tells us, in Psalm 62:8, to trust Him at all times and “pour out [our] hearts before Him,”  and then He tells us He is a refuge, a safe place—we don’t need to fear what we said or the words we withheld. He knows, and can handle them all—or none at all.

And if you’re one who struggles with how to verbally express how you feel, or when you do, you choose the wrong words, His Spirit will communicate with yours and express your very heart to your Heavenly Father (Romans 8:26). Psalm 62:8 in the Contemporary English Version says: “Trust God, my friends, and always tell him each of your concerns. God is our place of safety.”

Could you use a safe place when it comes to bearing your soul? Do you need a refuge, a place to hide, when you’re not ready to express how you feel? He is there for us whenever we need to process our thoughts and feelings. He is the Ultimate Listener and the Perfect Communicator. He is the Quiet Encourager and our Comforting Presence.

In Psalm 116:2, the songwriter said,  “Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!” (NLT). I love how that verse indicates God will come near us, rather than walk away, when we have something we need to say. He will draw closer—in order to listen carefully—when He knows we struggle with how to express what’s on our hearts, or how to filter our words. As a father with an ear bent toward his favorite daughter, our God will listen. So, pour it out. Or keep it in, and just close your eyes and reflect on being in His presence. He knows exactly what you need to say. He can hear your unspoken words too.

What do you need to express to someone today, yet you struggle to find the right words? Can you tell it to God instead, or ask Him to search your mind and thoughts and help you convey what you need to say to someone else? Many times, when I’m at a loss of how to say something to someone at just the right time and in just the right way, I’ve asked my heavenly Father to convey to that person what’s on my heart without me having to say anything. He has an amazing  way of touching someone’s heart and making them “hear” what I really wanted to say to them, but never found the words to do so.

Oh, the overwhelming, astounding love of God. All His ways are perfect (Psalm 18:30).  And through His help we are strengthened.

The next time you need to speak up or hold it in, praise Him with David’s song for being your help with what you need to say:

For it is you who light my lamp;
the Lord my God lightens my darkness.
For by you I can run against a troop,
and by my God I can leap over a wall.
This God—his way is perfect;
the word of the Lord proves true;
he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him (Psalm 18:28-30 ESV).

 “I love You, God. You make me strong. You are bedrock under my feet, the castle in which I live, my rescuing knight” (Psalm 18:1 MSG). Thank You for strengthening me with Your listening ear and Your interceding words.

Ask God to give you the words you need to say to someone, or to convey what’s on your heart to that person in His way and in His time.

(For more on a closer walk with God, see my newest book, The New Loneliness Devotional: 50 Days to a Closer Connection with God, available for pre-order on Amazon or at my website store NOW.)