A Desperate Cry

"In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From His temple He heard my voice; my cry came before Him; into His ears." -Psalm 18:6

Last week there was a moment when I thought I might lose my dad. In my head, not having clarity about what happened and being in a rush when I got a phone call my dad was in a work accident and was being life-flighted, immediately negative thoughts start to flood in... It was all too easy to let those thoughts get the best of me.

While I drove home to meet my mom to head to the ER, my heart was racing and my hands were shaking. My mind was in so many different places. At first, I tried to talk myself out of the panic... I kept telling myself over and over again not to think about all the things that could've really happened to my dad and what state he was in. But of course, that didn't calm me down...

I was still focusing on the situation. Not on who was in control of the situation.

Then, as I was stuck in traffic, beginning to get angry that I couldn't get home to head to the hospital faster, something in my attitude changed... It changed because I felt completely hopeless and there was absolutely nothing I could say or do to change what was going on. So, rather then trying to think more positively about the situation, I stopped thinking about the situation altogether. I stopped thinking about the what ifs and the possibilities and I just started praying out loud through gritted teeth: "Please God, please God, please God" over and over and over again. I don't know how many times I said those two simple words, just over and over again.

Although I was still afraid, the tears began to stop and the shaking subsided. Peace washed over me, and God showed up. I didn't know how my dad was doing, if he was for sure conscious, or what had really even happened at the time, but that fear was put on the back burner when I placed God in front.

It wasn't until I gave my needs up and began focusing on God that my worries very slowly began to fade.

All this to say, it isn't our job to figure out every possible angle of how a situation could play out. Although human instinct typically draws us to do so, placing that fear of the unknown in God's hands is absolutely the only thing that will give you real peace. Calling on God's name in a desperate plea for help is the only thing you can really do sometimes.

This is why Psalms is one of my favorite books in the Bible... It reminds me of the neediness in our human nature. It reminds me that I’m not alone when I feel completely hopeless. In modern culture, neediness and desperateness are frowned upon... But God sees our neediness in a very different way than we do. Where we see it as a weakness or irritating, God sees it as an opportunity for Him to sweep in and fulfill you... Ultimately drawing you closer to Him.

"Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me." -Psalm 142:6

"From the end of the earth I call to You, when my heart is faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I." -Psalm 61:2

Don’t ever hold back from letting God hear you cry and letting Him see your need. Every cry is heard.

Humbly allow yourself to be desperate for God, because I can only imagine just how much God desires for you to accept your need for Him.