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God Is Still Available

Most, if not all of you will agree that one of the nicest phrases someone could ever say to you is that they are available if and whenever you need them. Well, God is saying those exact words to us through his Word. In the book of Hebrews 4:16, the writer invites us to "come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need." People, in our time of need it's nice to know that God is available, and we can find grace (help, relief) in Him. At his throne, that is, in his presence we have what we need. The scripture declares, "In his presence is fullness of joy." Joy can't be found on Wall Street or at Fort Knox, it can only be found in the presence of an available Father.

Elijah on Mt. Carmel; Daniel in the dens of lions; Joshua at Jericho; are shining examples of God's availability in the time of need.

When we are in the battle like Elijah, there is no time to wonder if God is available, we need assurance. In the face of the enemy, we should be like the boys from the Hebrew nation, "The God we serve is able and he will deliver us out of your hands, O king." In the good times and the bad, it is reassuring to know that you have a Father who cares and shares.

As a child, I learned the benefit a good father is to his family. It makes a child proud to know that their father is available to them. Very often you will hear children say with pride, “my daddy takes care of us." If our earthly fathers know how to care for us, how much more will our heavenly Father care for his own.

As adult leaders, it is our responsibility to get this message over to our young people. If many of them knew that God was available, they would not turn to drugs, gangs, and violence as a way out. Homicide, suicide, theft, greed are end results committed by individuals who seek another way out apart from God. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Apart from him we are destined to fail. Many have tried to live their lives without his aid and were unsuccessful. David said in the Psalms, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, why? Because thou art with me. The "thou" the psalmist was referring to is God. What David was saying is that we have no need to fear, not even in the face of death because God is with us. He is a present help in the time of trouble.

When the men aboard the ship was been tossed from side to side, they remembered that Jesus was aboard and sought him for help. Jesus spoke to the wind and it became calm. The Lord was available to them then, and he is available to us now. Why not trust him today?

I have found God to be true in so many areas of my life. When I was a single parent raising four children on a menial income, we were never hungry. God is bread when we are hungry; water to the thirsty; a ladder to our high mountains and a bridge over life's troubled waters. "In Him we live, move, and have our being; as certain as your poets said, we are his offspring." Acts 17:28 If we, being the offspring (children) of God, it's only natural that a father would care for his own.

He promised when he left to go back to his father that he would never leave us nor forsake us. He is available to us today. Our bank accounts, marriages, relationships will either fail or go belly up, but Jesus never fails.

We read every day where the stock market fell, marriages dissolved, the economy is at an all time low, Americans are disheartened with the war and the situation in Iraq. In the midst of all the chaos, the Lord, that formed the world, is still available to make sure things function as they should. All that he asks of us is to trust and have confidence in Him.

By Naomi J. Brown