I call on the Lord in my distress, and he answers me.
Psalm 120:1
As I look at this verse, I think about how important it is in times of deep distress to call on the Lord and ask for His help and His deliverance. But what about in times of mild distress? Do we call on the Lord for His help when we are only slightly in need? For the most part, we are pretty good about turning to God in times of deep need, when there are no other avenues of help on the horizon. But for the normal, everyday pressures and problems of life, we remain staunchly independent, certain that we can figure it out ourselves. Sometimes we do not even give prayer a second thought. Surely God has better things to do than help us with our trivial problems?
How wrong we are! Big or small, God wants us to cast all our cares on Him. The God who takes an interest in how many hairs are on our head, cares deeply about every single thing in life that comes our way. Mundane or profound, our loving heavenly Father wants to be a part of it.
This concept has revolutionised my walk with the Lord. I now enjoy fuller fellowship with Him because I invite Him into my daily activities and problems. Like the times when I misplace an object, and I turn to Him, asking him to remind me where I put it and he answers my prayers! Or when the brand new remote for the TV fell in water and wouldn’t work and was going to cost a lot of money to replace. So my three-year-old son and I laid hands on the remote, asking God to heal it, and that very night, through a seemingly random encounter, God led us to someone who knew exactly how to fix it for free!
If only we could grasp how much God cares for us! We freak out, stress out, get frustrated and overwhelmed way more than we need to We are told to: Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition and with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard you hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:4-7). Like the old hymn say: O what peace we often forfeit/O what needless pain we bear/All because we do not carry/Everything to God in prayer.
Lord, help me to turn to you first whenever I’m in need. Amen.
(Extract from: Transformed by the Psalms by Kelly Bixler, Friend of Inspire)
