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Searching for Real Help: Where Do You Turn?


As you read this, are you facing difficult circumstances? Or maybe for you it’s a challenging relationship? I would guess that many of you reading this today are indeed in the midst of one of those things. And if you are giving thanks that you are not in one of those situations, you may have a good friend or family member who is. As we face those difficult circumstances and challenging relationships, where do we most frequently turn for help?

 

In those circumstances, my first response is often to use my own wisdom and resources to help. Or I may turn to a trusted friend or family member for their counsel. If I am closely connected with my church community, I may reach out to a staff member or church leader to help. All those can be good sources of help for us.  

 

But as Christ-followers, I also want you to ask and honestly answer this question: “Have you spent time in God’s Word believing He will provide help for you?” From the wisdom of Solomon’s proverbs to the practical advice from the book of James, God has provided His Word to help. But are we consistently utilizing this divine source of help?

 

Below is a story our Lead Pastor told in a sermon from 2024. It illustrates an example of the help the Lord can provide through His Word:

 

I know that many of you have been around the church world for a while, and you may know that sometimes people inside the church hurt other people. And every now and then, people even hurt Pastors and say bad things about them. I had gone a long, long time in ministry and had never experienced that until a couple of years ago.

 

A few years ago, somebody began to spread things within the church about me that just weren't true. And I experienced a level of pain that I didn't know was possible. It hurt. It really did. And I'll be totally honest with you - my flesh did not want to forgive. My flesh did not want to entrust this person to the Lord. My flesh wanted to fight back. But I cried out to the Lord, and I asked God, “Please, God, would you help? Would you help?”

 

Pretty early on in that situation, the Lord met me in my daily Bible reading and gave me a promise of His to stand on. I was sitting with the Lord one day reading Psalm 31, and this is what I read:

 

“You are my Rock and my Fortress. For the honor of Your Name, lead me out of this danger. Pull me from the trap my enemies set for me, for I find protection in You alone. I entrust my spirit into Your hand. Rescue me, Lord, for You are a faithful God.”  Psalms 31:3-5 NLT

 

And I'm just telling you, I clung on to that promise. I climbed up on top of it and held on for dear life until God did exactly that in my life. Until God rescued me. Until God delivered me. And I will tell you, there were many times where I didn't want to just leave that situation in God's hands. I wanted to try to fix it myself. I wanted to try to take control of it, and I wanted to try to work things out and vindicate myself and prove that I had not done or said these things. But I was able to say, “No, God has made me a promise that if I will just trust in Him, He will rescue. Because He is my Rock, and He is my Fortress.”  (1)

 

Now as you read that, you may be thinking, “Well, that guy’s a Pastor. Of course God hears, listens, and helps him! But I’m not a Pastor!” Let me assure you, God cares for and desires to help YOU – no matter your age, job title, or time spent following Christ. The promises of the Bible are available to every Christ-follower.

 

The Question for All of Us

So let’s get back to the question I asked previously: “Have you spent time in God’s Word believing He will provide help for you?”  And to clarify, I’m not primarily talking about opening your Bible randomly and asking God to provide a Scripture for you. Although the Lord can do that, I’m talking about consistently spending time reading God’s Word and asking Him to speak to you and reveal Himself and His truth to you.

 

My two-fold encouragement for you is 1) Ask the Lord to speak as you sit down and read His Word. Ask Him to give you ears to hear and a will that obeys whatever He says. Be open to hear whatever He might say to you – not just about the pressing circumstances of your life – but about anything, remembering He is the Master and you are the servant. And 2) let’s take on the role of a “treasure-hunter”. A treasure-hunter is always seeking treasure. And like the Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl of Great Price in Matthew 13, we want to believe He has treasures for us to discover in our reading of His Word. So make a commitment to make time to search for His promises and be expectant of finding His help through them.

 

 

 

Application Section:

 

  • Answer this question honestly: What are the most frequent places/sources where you turn for help in your life?   Is God’s Word on that list of sources? Why or why not?





  • What would it look like for you to begin consistently going to God’s Word as a “treasure-hunter” and expecting Him to speak to you about your life and circumstances?  What action steps can you take today to begin?





  •  Write out a prayer to God confessing anything you need to repent of and then asking the Lord to help you consistently go to Him and His Word first as your greatest source of help.

 

 

 


 

 

 

For Additional Study:

 

 

 

 


Written by Glen Solberg, Abiding Marriage July 2026. All Rights Reserved. Please email us at info@AbidingMarriage.org with any comments or questions.

  

SOURCES:

(1): Sermon by B.J. Stricklin, The Summit Church Little Rock: Your Relationships Matter. April 21, 2024. Sermon link: https://thesummitchurch-ar.subspla.sh/j4jtp84

 

Image by Marianne Bos on Unsplash

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