Bible Reading: Psalm 46; Revelation 5:1-14
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” – Psalm 46:1 (KJV).
We are constantly in need of help, the reason being that no man is sufficient of himself. Our best is not often good enough. We are constantly in need of God’s leading, assistance, protection and provision. “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God” – 2 Corinthians 3:5 (KJV). The poor, the rich, the educated, the illiterate, the sick, the healthy, the tall as well as the short, all need God.
Prayer is a proof of our need for God, especially our petition, supplication, intercession and even our worship. We can survive a week without food but cannot survive a second without God. We need God for our salvation and for the Christian life. Man could not save himself, so God, in his love, stepped in to help rescue man from the grip of sin and satan. But for God’s help, we would have perished. Grace is a product of God’s help. It is divine enabling to help man to truly live again. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: It is the gift of God” – Ephesians 2:8 (KJV).
Anytime man fails to recognize his need for God’s help, he sinks into destruction. We need to constantly acknowledge the need of God’s help. Sometimes, we are tempted or deceived to rely on our intellect, skills, certificates, human connections, our careers, our job or money or on our human strength. At the end of the day, we realize how foolish we have been by putting our confidence in any or all of these. No man ever succeeds in life without the help of God. “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing” – John 15:5 (KJV).
God is always willing to help; the problem is that sometimes we live like we can do without him. God is not only willing to help, He is also able to help. He is not a spare tyre and so should not be used as the last resort. Failure to recognize the help of God is pride at its peak. Humility is acknowledging God as our helper.
Prayer: Dear Lord, I humble myself to always count on your help.
Rev Vincent Diolu