Help
by Pastor Jim Strelan
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‘You are my help and my deliverer’ (Psalm 70:5).
There are those, both believers and unbelievers, who seem to think that if you are a Christian, then everything will always go well for you. You know that that isn’t true. You have your share of struggles. In fact, you may well have had more than your share. But if others know that you are a believer, if you have openly spoken about the goodness of God, then you open yourself up to ridicule. Your God is supposed to care about you, and he’s supposed to be on your side. So how come you are in this predicament now? And that only makes things even harder.
There comes a time when we can only cry out to God to bring us through. We do not deny our faith when we speak openly and honestly to God and let him hear our anguish. The psalms are full of this kind of thing. In this psalm, the lamenter is desperate for release and so asks God to deliver and to do it quickly. God is not only able to help and deliver, but he is also the help, and he is the deliverer.
That’s his nature. That’s his desire. Not a magic wand waved over you so that it all disappears. Not always an instant cure or an immediate turnaround of circumstances. ‘Quickly’ is what you want, and when you express that, God understands the desperation of your situation. But he is true to himself. He will help, and he will deliver. Those who question your faith (that’s what some believers like to do) and ridicule you will be silenced. In the end, that is why we can rejoice and be glad in him, even while we cry out.
God, help me. Look and see my struggles and deliver me. I put my hope in you. Amen.
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