The church that I often attend when I am not preaching somewhere is the Ono Community Church in Russell Springs, KY. Some of them will more than likely read this devotional; however, most of them will probably not remember that the text I used the first time I preached at the Ono Community Church was the 12th Psalm. That is not really important, just a bit of nostalgic information...

    We understand this to be one of the many psalms of David. As a matter of fact, this was actually put to music...a 8-stringed harp to be exact. If you are like me, and pray that you are not, then you might have tried to sing this psalm and imagine it being put to music. Although my tune was more than likely way off, it gave me the image of David's heart crying out to God for help. In this case, the prayer "Help, Lord" was brought about by the absence of godly men, certainly a prayer that we could pray today. When the creature proved to be flawed, David cried to the flawless Creator.

    The words "Help, Lord" are probably about the shortest prayer one could pray, yet their impact could prove to be monumental. The words are few, distinct, and to the point: WE NEED HELP!! The fact is God does not require a huge discourse before we present Him with our prayer. Even further, He knows what we need before we even pray!! And when Jesus walked the Earth, He condemned the long-winded prayers offered by the Pharisees who thought that they were heard for their much speaking, but in essence, all they were doing was drawing attention to themselves. God does not need that and God does not want that. He just wants us to know that we need His assistance...desperately.

    The occasions to utilize this prayer are frequent. We need help from the Lord in every aspect of our lives. We can ask Him to guide us in the study of His Word that He might help us to hear what He is saying. We can ask Him to help us whenever the opportunity arises for us to witness to someone. We need His help so much that there is no reason that we cannot cry out to Him, saying "Help, Lord!" at least once a day. Financially, spiritually, emotionally, physically, mentally...We need God's Help!! David was the King of Israel who had servants that had servants...but He still knew where to look when He needed help. We read of a time when the Amalekites came against the Israelites and invaded their homeland while they were away in battle. When David and his army returned, the city was burned to a crisp and all of the women and children had been abducted. The army turned to rise against their leader, blaming him for what had occured. What would you have done? The Bible says that David went and encouraged (or strengthened) himself in the Lord (I Sam. 30:6).

    It is good to know that God Himself has something to say regarding this issue. He says Himself in Isaiah 41:10 to His nation Israel: "Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will HELP YOU; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Sound familiar? If it does, Jesus echoes this statement at the end of His second recorded Great Commission, when He said that He would be with us until the end of world. So, God's promise is just not for Israel...He is with us and He will help us!! That is a great thing because we need help, Lord...