Help From God Might Come As Help From Others
To wrap up our recent talks about “help”, I thought I’d leave you with a reminder. Help from God might come as help from others. So often many of us pray to God for help, and for some reason we get these ideas of how that help will appear. We think God will somehow miraculously intervene. We think that God might empower and strengthen us to handle situations on our own. It doesn’t always come the way we imagine though. Occasionally, it’s much more humbling than we imagine.
Our prayers for help may come in the form of help from others. Frequently we may find ourselves having to admit that we need other people to help fix things we are dealing with or going through. Our gut reaction may be to decline that help because we trick ourselves into believing that we are somehow “less” if we accept help from others. However, we may be refusing God’s help when we don’t accept help from others that He may have sent on our behalf.
It reminds me of a fable or parable I heard years ago…
A terrible storm came into a town and local officials sent out an emergency warning that the riverbanks would soon overflow and flood the nearby homes. They ordered everyone in the town to evacuate immediately.
A faithful Christian man heard the warning and decided to stay, saying to himself, “I will trust God and if I am in danger, then God will send a divine miracle to save me.”
The neighbors came by his house and said to him, “We’re leaving and there is room for you in our car, please come with us!” But the man declined. “I have faith that God will save me.”
As the man stood on his porch watching the water rise up the steps, a man in a canoe paddled by and called to him, “Hurry and come into my canoe, the waters are rising quickly!” But the man again said, “No thanks, God will save me.”
The floodwaters rose higher pouring water into his living room and the man had to retreat to the second floor. A police motorboat came by and saw him at the window. “We will come up and rescue you!” they shouted. But the man refused, waving them off saying, “Use your time to save someone else! I have faith that God will save me!”
The flood waters rose higher and higher and the man had to climb up to his rooftop.
A helicopter spotted him and dropped a rope ladder. A rescue officer came down the ladder and pleaded with the man, “Grab my hand and I will pull you up!” But the man STILL refused, folding his arms tightly to his body. “No thank you! God will save me!”
Shortly after, the house broke up and the floodwaters swept the man away and he drowned.
When in Heaven, the man stood before God and asked, “I put all of my faith in You. Why didn’t You come and save me?”
And God said, “Son, I sent you a warning. Then, I sent you a car. Next, I sent you a canoe. I also sent you a motorboat. Lastly, I sent you a helicopter. What more were you looking for?”
I was failing Finance class
Unfortunately, I’m reminded of a very humbling experience of having to accept help from others. Many moons ago, I had to take a Finance class for my business degree. It was NOT my forte! The words “hate” and “dread” come to mind. I’m telling you, I struggled immensely in that class. However, it was required for my degree, so I had to take and pass it with a “C” or better.
I prayed and prayed for God to help me understand the concepts and to help me pass the class. A friend offered to do our homework together. I declined for a while because I didn’t want her to know what a hard time I was having and how stupid I felt. Finally, as my grades continued to decline, I agreed to work with her.
When she saw how much I was struggling, she suggested free tutoring that was being offered. What?! Me get tutoring? But I was a straight “A”, scholarship student. I wasn’t the person who GOT tutoring. I was the person who GIVES tutoring! No…I just needed God to turn a light bulb on in my brain so I could finally understand. Still…no light bulb. More prayers ensued. More failing grades followed.
Ultimately, I realized I would fail, and there was NO WAY I wanted to take that class again! So I finally reached out for help and accepted the tutoring. Wow. What a difference it made to accept help from others, even in the midst of my stubbornness and pride. But guess what…I passed the class. It was the first “C” I had ever made, but I had never been so happy to get a passing grade in all of my life. Had I not accepted help from others, it would not have been possible.
Examples of how Moses needed help from others
Throughout the life of Moses, we can see several examples of how God sends help from others instead of curing problems by other means.
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God didn’t take away Moses’ difficulty with speaking, nor did He send somebody instead of Moses. He sent help from others…through Aaron.
“But Moses pleaded with the LORD, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.” Then the LORD asked Moses, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say.”
But Moses again pleaded, “Lord, please! Send anyone else.” Then the LORD became angry with Moses. “All right,” he said. “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he speaks well. And look! He is on his way to meet you now. He will be delighted to see you. Talk to him, and put the words in his mouth. I will be with both of you as you speak, and I will instruct you both in what to do. Aaron will be your spokesman to the people. He will be your mouthpiece, and you will stand in the place of God for him, telling him what to say.” Exodus 4:10-16 (NLT)
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God didn’t make Moses supernaturally stronger with endurance. He sent help from others…through Aaron and Hur.
“Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset.” Exodus 17:12 (NLT)
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God didn’t reduce Moses’ workload. He sent helps from others…in the form of advice from Jethro and from people to whom he delegated some of his workload.
“The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?” Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.”
Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave.
But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”
Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.” Exodus 18:13-24 (NLT)
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Moses didn’t build the Tabernacle himself. God sent help from others…from people individually gifted to each do different tasks. (See Exodus 25-31)
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God didn’t continue to lengthen Moses’ life. He sent help from others…through Joshua as his successor and replacement.
“When Moses had finished giving these instructions to all the people of Israel, he said, “I am now 120 years old, and I am no longer able to lead you. The LORD has told me, ‘You will not cross the Jordan River.’ But the LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy the nations living there, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua will lead you across the river, just as the LORD promised.” Deuteronomy 31:1-3 (NLT)
God will send us help from others to share our burdens and to comfort us in times of need. This is part of His plan and command.
“Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2 (NLT)
“He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” 2 Corinthians 1:4 (NLT)
Take Some Practical Steps To Recognize And Accept That Help From Others IS Help From God:
- Stop being surprised at how God answers your prayers for help. Remember He’s God; you’re not. He may not always do things in the way you imagine. God can help you in whatever way He sees fit. He knows better than you anyway. Trust Him.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT)
- Humble yourself and accept help from others. Quit being prideful and accept God’s help, even if it means leaning on other people. Also keep in mind that refusing help from others may be robbing them of some things that God wants to do for them AND you.
- Open your mind and eyes to ways that God may be trying to help you through others. Sometimes it just takes a perspective shift. Sometimes it takes failing (like in my Finance class).
- Reach out when needed. God has placed people in your life for moments of need. They will feel so loved, honored, and needed when you reach out to them. Most likely, it will strengthen your relationship as well!
Have you missed recognizing that help from others was actually God trying to help you? Tell us about it by leaving a comment below.
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If you know anyone that could benefit from this, please pay it forward! Share this post via the sharing links below. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)
