The story is told of a man who was busily working to install a new roof on his home. Suddenly he slipped and began to slide down the steep roof toward the edge. In desperation he cried out to heaven, “Save me and I’ll serve Thee all my days!” Just then his pants caught on a nail and his slide was stopped. “Never mind,” he mumbled, “I’m OK now.”
So often we recognize our vulnerability in times of peril and are quick to call out for divine help to save us from danger. Then, when all appears well again, we may feel less dependent on heaven’s help and more sure of our own strength and ability. Too soon our attitude becomes, “Never mind; I’m OK now.”
How much better it would be to recognize, even in the good times, the kindness and care that are constantly given by loving Providence. How much more faithful it would be to express our heartfelt thanks and live for needed blessings even when things are going well. The peace we seek in troubled times may come more quickly if we have been acknowledging its Source all along.
The truth is, divine intervention is not a rare event that occurs only in response to emergencies and desperate pleadings. Rather, it can be a frequent experience that blesses us in days of plenty as well as in times of want. As a beautiful hymn reminds us, we need those blessings “every hour, in joy or pain.”1
May our lives be filled with grateful supplication, so that we are not strangers to the One upon whom we call for help.
Program #4011
1 “I Need Thee Every Hour,” Hymns, no. 98.