Faith Baptist Church of State College, Pennsylvania

The Lord Our Help
By  PastorDrew@growingatfaith.org 

“Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and shield.”
Psalm 33:20
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
Psalm 46:1
“For Thou hast been my help, and in the shadow of Thy wings I sing for joy.”
Psalm 63:7
“I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from whence shall my help come?
My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”
Psalm 121:1, 2
“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you,
for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,
surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
“...but He gives help to the seed of Abraham.”
Hebrews 2:16b
“Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.”
Hebrews 4:16
“So that we may confidently say, ‘The LORD is my helper...’”
Hebrews 13:6a

The LORD is our help and helper. One way that He helps us is through the fellowship of the saints (I Thes. 5:11; Heb. 3:13; 10:25; for examples, see Acts 14:22; II Cor. 7:6, 7). Did you know that the word “encourage” in these verses comes from the same Greek word translated as “Helper” in Jn. 14:16 (also, Jn. 14:26; 15:26; 16:7)? It is the word that means “to come alongside for the purpose of helping another with a specific task.” Dear friends, we have the opportunity and obligation to come alongside each other for the purpose of helping one another with the task of daily walking with the Lord Jesus Christ. As we do this, we cooperate with the ministry of the “another Helper,” God the Holy Spirit, and thus bring joy to His heart and glory to the Name of Jesus Christ (Jn. 16:14).

Concluding on a personal note, thank you for helping my dear wife and me as we departed for West Africa. Thank you for coming alongside of us in prayer on the 10th and 11th of February. It so encouraged our hearts to have the deacons pray over us during the morning service. That evening our hearts were greatly helped as we prayed with the church family concluding with the hymn, “More Love to Thee.” Finally, our hearts were wondrously encouraged as we prayed with many of you at the airport prior to our departure for Togo and Benin. (Note: Not only were you a help to us, but you were also a testimony to Cynthia, the stewardess on the shuttle plane, as she commented on what a special group of people you are- to which we gave and give our hearty agreement.) We thank the Lord for His help through the fellowship of the saints (our brothers and sisters) at Faith Baptist Church.

Sincerely,
Pastor Drew