SOS!

When ships were in trouble, going through extreme distress at sea, they put out an SOS radio signal to be rescued. 

SOS was not an acronym or abbreviation of anything—it was just a distinctive Morse code sequence. But many years later, when these letters became popular, people put meaning into them, such as:  "Save Our Souls" and "Save Our Ship". 

In everyday life, we likewise cry “SOS!” when we need help very badly. In such a crisis mode, what do we do?  

Answers vary: “I call my mom.” “I cry to let it all out.” “I plan what to do next.” “I psyche myself up to be strong.” “I pray.” 

The last answer is what we are encouraged to do by God Himself. Although people and our inner strength can help solve our problem, nobody can comfort us more than Jesus can. He said so in James 5:13 (NLT), “Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises.” 

Psalm 46:1 assures us, “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.” 

Prayer is often not our first response to crisis. We run to people close to us—family  members and close friends, or try to figure out a solution by ourselves. And only after we’ve done all, without much success, do we pray as a last resort.  

We know that God does not always give us the answer we want, but we also know that as a God of grace, He will give us a fresh way to look at our situation, and help us become stronger and more at peace. 

King David always called on God when in trouble, “. . . in my distress I cried out to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.” (Psalm 18:6) 

Whenever we are in trouble, let’s cry "SOS!" to the Lord in prayer.