We Don’t Have To Do It Alone

It is no big secret that life gets complicated. Things are thrown at us that takes us by surprise just like a curveball from Clayton Kershaw—even if you see it coming, there is little chance of doing much with it. While there is nothing that we can do to prevent many of these situations and circumstances from presenting themselves, one of the biggest mistakes that I see people making is trying to do everything on their own. This is something that I used to be really bad at and while I have gotten better at it, there are still times I find myself trying to do everything on my own.

This is human nature. After all, who knows our life better? We live it and know it like the back of our hand but the truth is, despite how well we may know the life we live, God knows all things including our hearts and lives so much better than we do. He knows every hair on our head and every thought that we have. This is not a movie or a scene from Bruce Almighty and while the movie was funny, we cannot deny that God exists as the proof is all around us but we also cannot forget that the same God that created us and knows all about us is the same God that helps us through all things. Even when things seem to be getting worse, all we have to do is call out to Him.

David is the author of seventy-five of the one hundred fifty (75 of 150) Psalms including Psalm 18:6 which reminds us that “In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.” God is a merciful God that stops at nothing to connect with His children including speaking to them. Psalm 34:4-5 explains how we should “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring [it] to pass” as Psalm 55:16 points out “As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me.” Perhaps the most popular of all the Psalms, the twenty third Psalms, reveals that no matter what we are going through, God is with us even in our valleys so there is nothing or nobody to fear regardless of the situation.

Nowhere in scripture, including the Psalms, are we told that we have to do it alone. Nowhere are we informed that we have to walk within the darkness because God is absent from us. Jeremiah 33:3 tells us to “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” When we do call upon God, we must remember that God does listen to us and when we are finished, God does talk with us so we must listen. If we expect an answer from God, we must listen with our ears and opened hearts and watch with our eyes because God does not shout things to us.

Different times within scripture, we are told that things came to pass and when they did, in the end, those who declared to be of God were victorious. They triumphed over their giants and stood in victory. For instance, Psalm 99:6 speaks of different men calling upon His name including Moses and Aaron: “Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them.” Speaking of Moses, Exodus 17:11 revealed “And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.”

Isaiah 65:24 is a perfect example of how God works, reading “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.” and Joel 2:32 further shows God’s gracious glory, reading “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.” We see just how compassionate God is through His mercy and forgiveness in Psalm 86:3, “Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily.”

Nowhere within this scripture or anywhere else within God’s word are we told that we have to do it alone. We do have to do things ourselves as God gives us many opportunities but after we have done our part, we must trust in God with the results. When we wake up in the morning, we should expect great things to happen just like we should expect God to hear our prayers and to answer them. God is a good Father and an understanding one as He knows our needs and situations and we works things out for our benefit and we never need to worry about doing it on our own as God is always there with us: “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose”

–Romans 8:28