Rescue Me

Sometimes I get tired of trying to work out my problems, and I wish that a knight on a big white horse would come riding up to rescue me. I don't need a real knight, of course, but I do want someone to make my problems disappear. Here in the real world, though, I find that all-out rescues are in short supply. There isn't some valiant hero waiting to save me from whatever mess I'm in, and no one is going to carry me out of the depths of my own hurt or exhaustion. There aren't very many white knights in my life's story, but there is God.

The problem with God is that His rescue missions don't always make sense to me. Sometimes I can't even tell what He's doing (or if He's doing anything to help me at all). Is God going to rescue me or not? Sometimes God's help is so subtle that I don't even recognize it when it comes. Sometimes God's rescue plan involves a variety of nondescript elements that blend together to become a perfect solution for my problem. Sometimes God sends outside help, and sometimes God works inside me to give me the power to overcome. Occasionally God even lets me be struck down by my adversary, but when that happens, He's always there to help me rise up again afterward. The rescue doesn't always come in the time or manner I'd most prefer, but eventually it does come. God never leaves me alone in times of trouble.

I've discovered that there are some strategies God uses fairly frequently to rescue me when I get into trouble. They don't always seem that significant on their own, but I've learned to recognize them as blessings from God.

• Prophets. Sometimes I just need some good advice. I think that God sometimes sends people across my path who can say exactly what I need to hear at the moment when I need to hear it. These people help me find my way when I'm lost and confused and provide solutions to puzzling problems. The prophets may not solve my problems for me, but they help me find the way to do it myself.
• Companions. Two are better than one. Some problems that are too big for me to handle alone become manageable when I have someone to help me. Even sorrows that weigh me down can be eased when a friend comes along to sympathize with me and help me find my lost hope. People don't always appear out of the woodwork at exactly the moment that I need them, but God has put people in my life on whom I can call when I get into trouble. They may not come riding up to rescue me, but these people will work alongside me to help get difficult jobs done.
• Inner strength. A lot of people think it's stupid to credit God with my own resolve, toughness, and perseverance, but I don't. There's a big difference between a talented athlete and a talented athlete using performance enhancing drugs. Likewise, God fuels me up to be more than I could be on my own. When things are hard and I want to give up, God whispers to me that I can make it, and somehow I carry on. When I think things are too difficult, God can give me a boost more powerful than an adrenaline rush. When I don't think I have enough in me to make it, God gives me more. 
• Perspective. Every so often, a still small voice whispers to me that my problems aren't as important as I think they are. So what if I fall? So what if I fail? God has given me a million tomorrows, and He makes each of them new with His boundless grace and mercy. Some challenges will best me, but my failures don't matter much in comparison with God's love. Every time I make a mess, God will be there to help me clean it up and move on. That's better than any temporary rescue.

Don't get me wrong. Sometimes I still want my knight on a white horse. Right now I'm asking God why this can't be easier. Don't I deserve to be carried off to safety once in a while? I suppose God will do that, in the end. But for now He's got me here in this tumultuous world for a reason, and I won't get a chance to live my life and learn from it if some handsome knight carries me away before I have the chance to face the challenge myself. I may want to be rescued, but I already have what I truly need—God.