| Exodus 14:14 – “The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” |
How many times have you watched a child struggle with a difficult task, and they refuse to ask for help? You want to help them – you know it is something far beyond their age or capabilities, but they resist any attempt you make to provide even a little bit of assistance. Everyone’s stress level rises, and it usually ends in a meltdown of some sort.
I remember when I was trying to learn how to ride a bike. My older siblings seemed to learn quite easily, but I really struggled. I was very small for my age (I was usually the shortest person in my class at school) but the smallest bike my parents had was too tall for me. I insisted on trying to ride anyway, but it always ended in scraped knees and elbows, and lots of teasing and laughter from my older brother. I was so stubborn – I tried over, and over, and over, but the results were always the same. After patching up my knees (and pride) for the umpteenth time, my mom finally asked my dad to get some training wheels for me. Dad wasn’t a fan of that at first, but finally relented and put them on for me. What a difference! I gained the confidence to ride and have fun with my siblings while I waited for my little legs to grow a bit longer. When we finally took the training wheels off, I was ready to go on long bike rides to the country store with my family. I wish I had asked for help sooner — it would have saved a lot of pain and scars on my knees!
God wants us to stop struggling on our own power and turn the difficult tasks over to him. There is a popular saying “Let Go and Let God,” and I think it applies here. I don’t know why we find it so hard to give the control of our situations over to God – he is all-knowing and all-powerful. Of course he can fight our battles for us! This is a verse I plan to memorize and reflect on each day.
Prayer: Thank you, God, for having the answers to my struggles if I will just let go and give control to you. Help me to surrender to you daily and not as a last resort because I have tried it on my own and skinned my knees. Amen.
– Betty Gossell
