Text: Psalm 54
Focus Text: “Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.” (Verse 4)
“I can do it myself!” These words from the mouth of a toddler bring joy to parents as their child acquires new skills and a sense of accomplishment. We marvel at how this same child, who required the safety and nourishment of a mother’s womb, has grown to the point of announcing their independence. After all, the goal of parenting is to raise a child to self-sufficiency.
Or is it?
Are we ever truly self-sufficient? When things are good it may seem that we are. But adversity, sickness, and aging change our perspective. Life forces us to say, “I can’t do it!” In desperation, we create our own solutions; medicine and technology. We end the life of the “inconvenient,” preborn child, or when suffering seems too great and death is certain, we say, “I will choose my time to die.”
Yet, we are not sufficient and must confess, “I cannot do it myself.” In our weakness, we turn to the strong one, “O God save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might” (Ps. 54:1). For “Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life” (vs. 4). I could not, cannot, and will never have to do it myself. “For he has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies” (vs. 7). Instead, we say, “It is finished, for me by Christ.”
Let us pray: Lord of our life, we give You thanks that You continually help us and uphold our lives! We ask Your forgiveness for those times when we, like stubborn children, demand that we do it on our own, and we thank you that You do forgive us and that Your, “It is finished,” rings in our ears all of our lives. This we pray in Jesus’ name and for His sake. Amen.
(Deaconess Amy Rast, Associate Director of the Deaconess Program)