By Donnie Stuart
“‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’”
— Jeremiah 33:3
Do you have that friend in your life whom you may call upon, whatever the time of day, and you know he or she will come to your aid?
I raised cattle for a large portion of my life. Calving season was always a rewarding, but also a challenging time, especially with the replacement heifers. It always seemed that any trouble that occurred would do so at the foulest, darkest time possible, usually in the middle of the night.
Sometimes, there were situations that required extra help. I was blessed with two friends, either of whom, if I called would say, “let me get my boots on, and I’ll be right there.” Seeing the headlights of the vehicle bringing help was always a welcomed sight. I knew that I only had to call upon my friend and he would answer, and he knew the same of me.
The Lord has given promises throughout His word that He is willing to answer when we call upon Him. What a blessed privilege it is to be able to reach out to the Creator in our time of need! We have repeated promises that He will answer us when we call out to Him in honest, openhearted sincerity.
This is a blessed promise, but, I have come to realize that God wants more from us than to only call upon Him in our time of need. The relationship that I have with those two friends is not based upon us calling upon each other when we have a problem; we have friendship and relationship based on much time spent with each other on a regular basis. We enjoy regular fellowship and interaction with each other.
Do you have the relationship with the Lord that can be described as love, respect, fellowship and real connection? In Genesis 5:22, we see that “ Enoch walked with God three hundred years” and in Genesis 6:8-9, “Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord…..Noah walked with God.” These great figures in the Bible spent quality time with God — not just in times of stress, but regularly, in solid relationship.
Call upon the Lord today in your time of need, but call upon Him also to praise Him, to thank Him, to honor Him for Who He is. Beware of treating the Lord as your parachute or “get-out-of-jail-free” card. If I only called on my friends when I needed or wanted something, I think that, though they would continue to help, I would be missing out on so much more that our relationship could be.
God’s dominion is not small nor are His blessings scant. Our issue is usually that we go to Him with a complaint and a teacup, rather than praise and a bucket.
Friends, spend time with the Lord in praise and prayer, in supplication and surrender, but most of all, remember that a good friend must be a good listener. “Listen now to my voice; I will give you counsel” Exodus 18:19.
Call upon Him, and He WILL answer you. Blessings upon you.
Stuart is pastor of Rock Bluff Church, Pelahatchie.
