Observation: Psalm 69 is one of the most urgent prayers I know of in the Bible. It begins, "Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck." It would be hard to find a better poetic image for a spiritual emergency! You can go a long time without human contact, you can go a few days without food or water, but five minutes without air, and it's over. This is a "911" prayer if I ever heard one.
Application: Spiritual emergencies are rare, but they do happen. I think more often than not, the spiritual problems I face are ongoing, but quiet. The doubts and insecurities, the questions with no good answers just linger like background noise. But once in a while there is an urgent spiritual problem that needs immediate prayer, and an immediate answer. This can be a personal crisis, like a health issue or a death in the family, or a societal crisis, like September 11, or last week's ransacking of the capitol building.
What we need most in those times is to know we're not alone. It's often an abstract concept to say "God saves," but when you are in crisis and a sibling in Christ is by your side (or on the phone if that's not possible) standing ready to lift you before God in prayer, there's nothing abstract about it. God is coming to your rescue. I've had it happen before. I hope you have too.
Maybe this week is a good time to be asking, "who would I call if I needed prayer right now? Who is my spiritual paramedic?" It's good to know ahead of time, and to have a community of faith ahead of time, for just such an event. Any church worthy of the name would not judge you for falling away for a time, any more than a 911 operator would lecture you about driving more carefully before sending an ambulance: what we do is pray, and show up for those who need it.
Prayer: God, thank you for showing up and rescuing me when I need it most.
No comments:
Post a Comment