The Help of God for the Needs of our Day

“The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought.”

-Romans 8:26

In every age we encounter difficulties. Through the Bible, there are difficulties from without (war, famine, oppression) and difficulties from within the family and nation (abandonment of God, immorality, strife, difficulty). There are also difficulties we face. We need also acknowledge that there are difficulties within the church (immorality, failure of the clergy and hierarchy). Romans 3:23 describes our state well, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” In other words, our sin and ineptitude are not unforeseen by God. It is pride that we think we can right ourselves without God’s divine intercession. That is why we try, fail and are confused by our lack of results. Without God, we can do nothing (cf. John 15:5).

We need the help of God. We have lost our way and can not find our way back to sanity without God. The way to spiritual, physical and emotional maturity is no longer clear. As a town, we have also lost our way. Our sense of direction is not as clear as it once was. We see a similar pattern in the life of Israel.

Israel had to experience hardship in order to understand how far they had gone. God did not remove his blessings, but He allowed Israel to experience the consequences of their choices. Think of a child who demands, “I’ll do it myself.” The child may get it done, but they will likely make a mess in the process. God permits these kinds of experiences so that we learn to turn to Him. He wants to provide for our success, but we need His help just as children need their parents to reach their potential.

God has solutions to our present problems. God does not simply change the terms of the problem, or distract us from them. He truly transforms us. Think of St. Peter. He was the first pope, but he became so through the grace of God. After Peter denied Jesus three times, he was bent over by the weight of his sins. Peter, who denied Christ and ran away, was transformed by God’s grace. Peter then taught, performed miracles and even bravely faced death. Peter is an example of the transformation God can do in a soul.

We have come far enough from God that it may take calamity to call us back to God. God does not cause such calamity. It is a consequence of our choices. The question is how much suffering will we have to endure to realize that it is our folly which causes it. Will we have to face the annihilation of nations. Will we have to see the Church and her members suffering the crucifixion spiritually as our Lord did? I do not know. What I do know is that in the face of human suffering and sin God does not abandon us, but endures the suffering with us. I am confident that he is with us even if we must undergo the intense suffering of the Cross.

When we choose sin instead of God’s plan we suffer the consequences of our actions. However, when we turn from sin and repent; the blessings last generations. God wants to transform us just as he transformed St. Peter. He wants to renew us. He wants to give us life and joy that we have never known before. We have tried it our way throughout history when God sought to prevent calamity. We have seen those results. How much will it take for us to try it God’s way individually, and as a nation.