Dr. Lawrence Butler, The Bridge Church, Pembroke

"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth” (Psalms 121:1-2).

Help is the assistance that comes during the time of need. Someone or something helps bring about a change that is needed but that you cannot do alone. People are able to perform many things, but there are always problems too great for humans to resolve. In those times Jesus is able to step in and provide whatever is needed, even the miraculous.

When the Psalmist “lifts up” his eyes, he is meditating, or reflecting. In this moment he admits that only the Lord can truly help us in our time of need. With great faith and confidence he proclaims that his help comes from the Creator.

Therefore, there is no greater One who can help us than He. “Trust in the Lord, and do good” (Psalms 37: 3).

Haven’t we all been offered assistance by some AI source? Yet, what help is really available other than information? Sometimes we need to move some furniture, but we need something other than information. I realize the possibilities with AI go far beyond that example, but there are still situations and emergencies in life that science simply cannot resolve. What about the person who needs deliverance from addictions? How about the marriage that is ending because of abuse? What about our teens who are quite lost in a world of drugs, sex, alcohol and video games? We find them partying, shooting each other, taking over the streets and blocking traffic, and turning away from church? This is not a good direction for our country. The Prophet Hosea gives us an agricultural image to show us the result of living wasted lives. “For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind” (Hosea 8:7).

The symbolism is that futile and sinful living results in destructive consequences. The deliverance we desperately need can only come from the Lord God Almighty.