{"id":2410,"date":"2021-02-12T06:28:00","date_gmt":"2021-02-12T06:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dougburgett.net\/blog\/?p=2410"},"modified":"2021-02-01T19:01:29","modified_gmt":"2021-02-01T19:01:29","slug":"easy-and-free-seek-the-lords-help-first","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dougburgett.net\/blog\/easy-and-free-seek-the-lords-help-first\/","title":{"rendered":"Easy and Free: Seek the Lord\u2019s Help First"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a serious foot disease. Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek the Lord\u2019s help but turned only to his physicians. <\/p><cite>2 Chronicles 16:12<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>We all have problems. They might be related to our health, our finances, our relationships, or something else, but make no mistake, we all have problems.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many of us look for answers on the internet, jumping into a rabbit hole of information. Sometimes that can help, and other times it can actually make things worse. Nevertheless, it\u2019s easy and free.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But something else is easy and free and has an impressive track record of miracles. I know, you\u2019ve probably heard it before and maybe even tried it. But the Lord of all creation is ready and willing to help us with our problems, if only we ask.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Seek The Lord, But Do Your Part<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The first thing we have to do with any problem is assess it. If you just cut off your finger, you\u2019re going to have to call the doctor. But, you can also call God. It\u2019s going to take some time before a doctor will be able to help you, so seek the Lord\u2019s help in the meantime. He\u2019s eager to help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Maybe a problem requires less immediate attention. Perfect. You\u2019ve got plenty of time to seek the Lord\u2019s help. Remember, it\u2019s easy and free.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The point is, God is ready to help with any problem, but we have to do our part as well. It\u2019s a collaboration of sorts. Some examples are better fit to illustrate this than others. Typically, the bigger the problem, the more help we need.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We can spend our time trying to solve a complex problem on our own, or we can take the easy route and seek the Lord\u2019s help first. One prayer is all you need. Once God is involved, you\u2019re good to go. He\u2019s on the case. Trust that everything will work out, but remember, you still have to participate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">God Knows What We Need<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s go back to our finger example. Doctors aren\u2019t able to put your finger back on and you\u2019re confused. You asked God for help! He didn\u2019t deliver! What\u2019s the point?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The point is God always delivers. He doesn\u2019t always do exactly what you think He\u2019s going to do, because that would be disappointing. God is omnipotent. We are not. We may think we know what\u2019s best and we may really want something specific, but God may have other things in mind. He\u2019s got a bigger picture. Let Him help. Don\u2019t micromanage God.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Seeking the Lord\u2019s help means we have the power of the universe behind us. That\u2019s comforting. If nothing else, it should put your problem into perspective. There is no problem bigger than God.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Don\u2019t\u2019 Be Like King Asa<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>King Asa did what many people would do when he was stricken with a serious foot disease. He called the doctor. Then he called more doctors. He got his best physicians working on his foot. That\u2019s good. Those were the best people to put on the case. But King Asa needed more than just people, and so do we.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>King Asa didn\u2019t call upon God. That was a mistake. Not only did he die, but his legacy is now documented in the Bible as the guy who died because he didn\u2019t ask for the Lord\u2019s help. It doesn\u2019t say specifically that King Asa would have lived, but it does seem implied.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m not saying that death can always be avoided by seeking the Lord\u2019s help, but the narrative will certainly be different. God will make use of the situation in ways that are glorious.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I suppose we could make the argument that King Asa\u2019s legacy is teaching others not to make the same mistake. But, there\u2019s good and bad in everything. I wonder what King Asa\u2019s story would have been if only he had sought the Lord\u2019s help first.&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Asking for God\u2019s help isn\u2019t the only easy and free option when a problem arises, but it\u2019s the only one guaranteed to work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2412,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-christianity","is-cat-link-borders-light"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Easy and Free: Seek the Lord\u2019s Help First - 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