No matter how bad things get, help is on the way

Help is on the way.

This is one of the most encouraging phrases you might ever hear. You might be exasperated at work because you cannot find a solution to a problem; then, to your relief, a colleague walks in and asks if he or she can help you.

You could be broken down on the highway without cell service when a good Samaritan comes along, gets ahold of someone, and informs you that help is on the way. Suddenly, the day is not so dark anymore, and the situation not as desperate. Lastly, you could be seriously hurt, and as the fear of death starts to grow, you hear someone say they just got off the phone with 911. Once again, help is on the way.

Suddenly, there is a reason to live. Your emotions that were only full of despair start to let hope in, and there is some relaxation in your heart and mind as you wait for the help to arrive.

Oh Christian, do we realize there is always help for us? Do we know that help has been provided, is available for us right now, and will be there in some way when we need it in the future? If the signs of the times, the turmoil in our country or anything else in life is blocking your view, overwhelming your emotions or convincing you that some situation is hopeless, please remember where our help comes from.

Psalm 121:1-2 states: “I lift my eyes to the mountains, where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.”

What do you notice about this passage? Is it when the author gives up because the problem is too big? Maybe it was when they looked for help but could not find anyone or anything to help them. Was it the part where they got scared, felt alone, decided that nobody was ever coming to help, and from then on believed and lived like there was no one who would ever care enough to help? It could have been the part where they ran around like a chicken without a head and let fear, worry or depression destroy them from the inside out.

You might be thinking I have lost my mind (that is another subject for another column) because you do not see how anyone could have any of those reactions based on reading that scripture. You would be right, because based on Psalm 121, we should never have any of those reactions.

Why do we then? Why do people who claim the identity of being a Christian act like that sometimes? I would propose that, too often, we look for earthly help based on earthly wisdom. And we get about as much help as idol-worshippers get from idols with their problems (which is no help at all, in case you were wondering).

What jumps out at me in Psalm 121:1-2 is the fact that he answers his own question. It states: “Where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD.” This tells me that there are going to be situations and circumstances in our lives where we are going to need help or at least see a reason to ask the question about where help is going to come from.

The author then emphatically informs himself, and anyone who is listening, that his help comes from the LORD. There is not a question of whether help is coming. There is no overwhelming fear, anxiety, depression, anger or any other negative emotions or thoughts that lead to desperation and hopelessness – just a simple statement of fact. I would advise all of us to try to adopt that mindset with so many of the basic building blocks of our faith.

Try to just take God at His word. Just believe what the Bible says, and then apply it to your life however God would like you to apply it.

God is either the maker of Heaven and Earth or He is not. You will believe God can help you and grow strong in faith, hope and love, or you will believe that He cannot or will not help you, which will result in you living by your own strength, wisdom and earthly viewpoints.

The latter will only lead to certain negative outcomes for your spiritual walk. You will not step outside your comfort zone when God tries to call you out onto the waves because it is too scary. You will not listen to the Shepherd’s voice, nor will you recognize it when He calls for you, because you never read the Bible or pray like there is anything beneficial from doing either of those in the first place.

If you do believe it is all up to you, you will burn out or give up; we were not created to do everything by ourselves. We were created to depend on God, be in awe of His power, look to Him for help and call on His name for that help. Do we do this?

If you do, you are going to find out there are innumerable positive qualities for your faith, testimony and witness to others. You will find out that, no matter what initial reaction you might have to some life event that either confuses, scares, traumatizes, or hurts you very deeply, there will be an emergency lifeline you can use to get help from the LORD. Rarely will it come as you imagine it will, but it will be mind-blowing, faith-building and mountain-moving when the LORD shows you how much help He can be.

When you realize that there is no problem big enough to even trouble the Creator of everything, it will change your faith walk forever. You could begin living out a faith like we usually on read about in Psalm 23.

May God be with you, and may you look to Him for help.