Our Spiritual First Responders: Who To Call In A Crisis
Everyone needs a directory of Spiritual First Responders when we’re in the midst of a crisis.
Who do you call first when you’re going through a hard time? A friend? Parent? Your pastor? Are your troubles strictly between you, Jesus and God? Actually, we need all of the above.
First Responders to Attack by Dog
“El Mirage. What is your emergency?”
“I’m on 128th Avenue near Desert Cove on a walk with my daughter in a stroller, and a dog is harassing us.”
(Frenzied barking and terrified cries in the background.)
“OK. I’ll send someone immediately. Stay on the line with me until they get there.”
She keeps herself between the pouncing dog and the stroller, trying to balance the phone to her ear.
It’s taking forever… as the child cries with the rawest fear she’s ever heard.
Finally after what seemed half a day spent in strategic evasive action, in what was actually about 2 minutes, 2 officers are there. They separate the dog from the mother and child and maneuver the dog back into his yard. Where no one is home, and the fence low enough to be jumped by this energetic canine. Since the dog didn’t actually bite anyone, they don’t call the animal rescue people.
By now the child is calmer. A few hiccouphing sobs remain as an officer squats beside the stroller to talk to her. “Are you okay now?”
“Ye-ess.”
“I got here as fast as I could. I’ll always come as fast as I can when you call for help.”
The officers make sure mom and child are both alright before they leave for other important jobs like armed robberies and opioid stings.
Now the child is asking to call 911 when things start looking dicey. Before this incident, she would hide behind her mom if they got close to an officer, now they’re her trusted first responders.
Our Spiritual First Responders
When life gets dicey, Who do you call? Who is your trusted First Responder?
We dial Jesus, the 911 operator, and He dispatches the call directly to the One Who can fix our emergency.
“
Whatever you ask in my name,
that will I do,
that the name of the Father might be glorified in the Son.
“
If our emergency is desperate we can go directly to the Father.
“
Let us therefore come boldly
to the throne of grace,
that we may find mercy, and grace
in the time of trouble.
Hebrews 4:16
“
We might be the child in the stroller, not even in a position to make a call to Jesus or God.
Maybe we feel too far away to ask. Maybe we feel too numb, too desperate and need an interceder. We need a friend, a pastor, the clerk at the checkout counter. Anyone who can fill in the gap. Someone to tell us we can do this, that God is on our side. To tell us that even when we feel we don’t deserve God’s help, He is ready and waiting for our call.
Like the 911 Dispatcher, Jesus is always there.
Call right now, in the midst of your emergency. You are never alone.
