“For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Luke 11:10 NLT)

 

Pride and self-sufficiency are two big obstacles to spiritual growth. A good way to overcome them is to cry out to God when you need help.

The Bible tells the story of Simon Peter, who had the extraordinary experience of walking on water with Jesus. When the impossibility of the situation began to dawn on him, however, his faith faltered. He cried out, “Save me, Lord!” (Matthew 14:30 NLT).

How easily Jesus could have said, “Where is your faith, Peter? You made your bed; now lie on it. Try swimming.” But the Bible says, “Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him” (Matthew 14:31 NLT). Immediately. I like that.

When you begin to sink and cry out, “Lord, save me!” He will immediately reach out. But you must cry out for His help. And that’s hard for some people to do.

As a kid, I spent a lot of time at the beach. When I was out bodysurfing one day, a big set of waves started coming in. So, I did what I was supposed to do: I swam toward the waves and went under them. When I looked up, there was another set. I swam under those, too. One set after another came. In time, I drifted so far out that the people on the beach looked like little ants to me. Suddenly, I felt exhausted—with no strength left and nothing to hold onto. In that moment, I knew I was in trouble.

I realized I had two choices. I could cry, “Help!” and the lifeguard would come running with his life preserver. When we got to shore, my friends would laugh, and I would never live it down. Or I could drown with dignity.

I cried out! A lot of us don’t want to admit our need. We don’t want to cry out to God. We want to maintain our dignity. To get the proper perspective on what to do in times of need, we need to look to God’s Word.

Jonah cried out to God after he was swallowed by a giant fish (see Jonah 2:1–9).

Hannah cried out to God for a son. First Samuel 1:10 says she “was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord” (NLT).

King David was under tremendous stress when he wrote, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help?” (Psalm 22:1 NLT).

Jesus quoted the words of Psalm 22 when He cried out to God from the cross (see Matthew 27:46). If Jesus wasn’t too proud to cry out to God, neither should we be.

There are only so many things we can do to help ourselves. Crying out to God frees us from our own limitations. It opens a whole world of possibilities. God can bring ultimate good from any situation. All we have to do is cry out to Him for help. Every day of my life, I need the best God has to offer. And you do, too.

 

Reflection question: What do you need to cry out to God about in your life? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship!

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