In Touch - May 7, 2008

In Touch Daily Devotional
by Dr. Charles Stanley

Welcome to the In Touch Devotional.

Have you ever felt totally helpless? Can you remember facing a situation or emergency in which you were powerless? It’s a sobering experience for anyone. Even people who claim to be wholly dependent on God, still like to feel as if they have some control over their circumstances.

(dzhee-HAHSH-uh-fat) Jehoshaphat faced a moment like that. In today’s verses, the good king was confronted with dangerous news. Three different armies had joined forces to destroy Israel. As he listened to the report, “a great multitude” of attackers were already on their way. What was the king’s response? Verse 3 tells us he was “afraid.” That makes perfect sense. He no doubt felt powerless. But, even in that moment of helplessness, he knew exactly what to do. Scripture doesn’t say, (dzhee-HAHSH-uh-fat) “Jehoshaphat was afraid and ran away” or “he was afraid but charged headlong into battle.” No, the Bible tells us that “Jehoshaphat was afraid and turned his attention to seek the Lord”. That was the perfect response to a helpless situation. The king knew this was not the time to give up, nor was it the time to take action motivated by fear. Instead, he did the only wise thing he could: he prayed. More than that, he called on others to pray. And suddenly, the entire situation changed, because God had been brought into a hopeless situation.

When we feel helpless, the first word out of our mouth should be “Father.” From then on, helplessness isn’t an issue, because God will provide what we need.

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