Save Me!

Save Me!

The LORD has heard my weeping.The LORD has heard my plea;the LORD will answer my prayer.

Psalm 6:8-9

It was a bright Sunday morning in northern Arkansas, and my friend James was wrapping up his sermon of the day. He had done an excellent job with his topic, he was thinking to himself, when the disruption occurred.

One of the older men in the church had been sitting about halfway back. He and his wife were parents of a tiny, two-year-old surprise package that had been divinely delivered to them later in their lives. The wife was out of town for a day or two, and the husband had spent the entire sermon trying to keep that little bundle of energy under reverent control.

Finally, just as James was ready to make his concluding point, the man could take no more. So he picked up the little girl and started toward the back of the auditorium. Walking out, he had his back to James, but the tot, being carried in typical over-the-shoulder fashion, was facing James.

Now, little Betsy was familiar with this exit routine and fully aware of its coming “reward.” So just as her father pushed through the double doors of the auditorium, she threw her arms out to James and wailed plaintively, “Save me!”

The congregation attempted to stifle its laughter, of course, and James later confessed that by that time, the rest of his sermon was strictly anticlimactic.

We could all take a lesson from Betsy, though. When you are up to your ears in trouble in this life and it looks as if the worst is yet to come, don’t be afraid to throw your arms out to God and call for help. He will hear you, and he will answer.

Lord, please hold me tightly in your arms throughout my life, and when the end of my earthly life comes, please take me to be with you. You are my only hope and my greatest joy. You are my salvation. I love you, Lord, and I praise your holy name. Amen.