How Much Do We Need God?

   Just how much do we need God?  Most people, even the most dedicated, probably do not really think much on a daily basis about how much they truly need God.  If asked the question, most of us would quickly affirm that we need God every step of the way, every day, but probably do not live like it.  We get caught up in all the busy-ness of daily living.  Well, do we really need God?

   Ask that question of a single mother who’s been deserted by the father of her children.  She has no money, no job, no real skills and she may be pregnant again.  She’s lived a hard life in the relatively short time she’s been alive.  Her natural beauty, so apparent not long ago, has faded greatly.  She’s reduced to the meager subsistence she can gain through government aid and charity.  Do we really need God?
   Ask a man in his fifty’s who’s worked hard his whole life, over twenty five years with the same company.  He does his job well, the only job he really knows.  He owes another ten years on his home and four more on that car he and his wife bought last year.  He has two children in college.  It’s not been easy, but he and his wife have managed fairly well.  Before long he can begin to save for retirement.  But when he goes into work today he receives a letter from the company.  The company’s been sold to a bigger company that makes the same product his company makes.  His company will be closed at the end of the month.  He will receive two weeks severance pay.  The old and new owners are sorry for any inconvenience or hardship.  Do we really need God?
   Ask a woman who’s just heard the doctor say the dreaded word: “Cancer!”  What are her prospects, what can be done, is the prognosis good, did they catch it in time?  Will she, die?  The doctor makes no promises.  He tries to offer hope, encouragement.  Radiation is often effective.  Chemotherapy has shown promise.  Surgery is not an option in this case.  Only time will tell...  She leaves the doctor, her mind filled with questions, confusion, sheer terror.  Tears stream down her face.  She must go home and fix dinner, and tell her family!  Do we really need God?
   Ask people trapped in a state of depression so intense that they just cannot seem to function.  They’d rather sleep than face life.  They eat just enough to drive away the hunger pangs. They don’t talk much, they have nothing to say.  Their faces show little expression, except a sense of hopeless despair.  People keep telling them to “snap out of it,” people who don’t understand the crushing weight pressing down on them that they cannot budge by themselves.  Their constant wish is to be able to care again, to feel joy again, to live.  Do we really need God?
   And what of the hundred other situations that bring us face to face with the frailty of our physical existence?  A stroke victim?  A drug addict?  An alcoholic?  An elderly person living out his/her final years in a nursing home?  A patient lying on a gurney waiting to be wheeled into the operating room for major surgery?  Do we really need God?
   Yes, we really need God.  But not just when things go bad.  We need God when things are good.  We need to walk with him when we’re young and vigorous, when we feel strong, happy, healthy.  Walking with God when things are good equips us to face some staggering reality that might come our way later.
   Don’t take God for granted.  Look to Him for strength and direction every day.  Thank Him for His blessings, and use those blessings in His service and to His glory.  You really need God!