Hear my cry for help,
    my King and my God,
    for to you I pray. — Psalm 5:2

In honour of my father, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, and his life work helping Christians understand the Jewish roots of their faith, I offer you one of his devotional teachings from the beloved Psalms.

The Rev. Franklin Graham once made the following assessment of the current political climate in the United States, “We have turned our back on God. We see the mess in Washington and all the problems that they’re having . . . You haven’t heard one person in Washington say, ‘Time out guys. Let’s get down on our knees and let’s call in the name of Almighty God and let’s ask Him for help.’”

Ask God for help. To a lot of people, that’s a novel concept. 

It’s sad to think that so many people go through life feeling like they have no one to turn to but the people around them. It’s even sadder to consider what might happen if those same people would turn toward God. What miracles might occur? What changes could take place, both for individuals and for nations? How many problems might we solve if we simply asked the Lord to help us?

King David, no stranger to trials and tribulations, wrote: “Hear my cry for help, my King and My God, for to you I pray.” David knew how to ask for help.

In this plea, David acknowledged two important things. First, God is King. David acknowledged that God reigns supreme — there is no one greater — and David was completely obedient to Him. Secondly, David acknowledged that only God could help him; he said “. . . to you I pray,” addressing God, and no one else. David did not rely on other people for help, nor was he confident in his own abilities to solve his greatest problems. David put his trust solely in the Lord.

By turning to God for help and recognizing that God was the only source of reliable help, David guaranteed that he would receive some assistance.

Imagine that you need a favour. If you ask some friends, maybe they will help you out depending on how much time they have or whether they feel like helping you. But when you turn to someone and say, “You are the only person in the world who can help me!” that person immediately feels responsible and more than likely will lend you a hand.

Similarly, when we turn toward other people for help, they may or may not come through for us. But when we turn to God in complete dependence and desperation, we will receive His assistance.

God wants us to ask for His help. He wants to assist us. We dare not squander the opportunity to enlist His aid.

Explore the beauty of the Psalms through the eyes of one of its main authors, King David, with our complimentary Bible study, “The Psalms of David.”