Call upon

“for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him.”  Romans 10:12

Call upon – “Mommyyyyy!,  Daddyyyyyyyy!”  You know that sound.  It is the “instant jump to your feet see what’s wrong” sound from a child in trouble.  Have you ever noticed that a parent has a kind of built in sound receptor for the voice to his or her child?  There might be all sorts of children playing, but you are able to hear your child’s cry as though the rest of the world were silent.  That’s what this word is all about.  Calling out in desperation for some special person’s aid.

Epikaleo is the Greek verb that means, “to call upon”.  It is used for giving a name or calling for aid or calling on God.  Here it is in the middle voice.  That means it has special significance for the subject, the one who is calling.  It is a word of very personal request.

Did you notice that Paul says all who call upon the Lord will receive His favor?  This does not mean everyone who just says His name.  This is not like announcing the name of someone at a formal ball.  This is “Mommy” and “Daddy” calling.  Personal, immediate, intimate and dependent.  When you call on the Lord as though you were His child in trouble, He rushes to your aid.  He is the perfect Father.  He knows exactly what you need.

There are days when I feel like I have called upon the Lord over and over in my troubles and He just doesn’t seem to come to my rescue.  Then I reflect on those times when my own children called to me.  I quickly looked to see their situations.  And sometimes I knew that if I just delayed a bit, they would learn something important about life and themselves.  I still watched, just in case, but I wanted them to grow so it was important that I not rush in too soon.

Last week my wife and I were really feeling the pressure of our situation.  My wife prayed, “Lord, please give us just some small sign so that we will know You are still watching over us.”  The next day a tiny miracle arrived.  A friend of a daughter of a woman (someone we never knew) sent us a little jar.  In it was a note saying that God had directed her to give this to us.  It contained her tithe and offering money.  She was 18 years old.  God answered our prayer with the faith of a child.  Isn’t that just like Him?

Today:  When you cry out as a child, God always hears.  Give Him time to answer in a way that He knows is best for you.