You will call out, and the Lord will answer.
You will cry out, and he will say, “Here I am.”
—Isaiah 58:9
Thirty-three-year-old Dr. Mark Ashton Smith, a lecturer from Cambridge University, capsized his kayak in treacherous waters off the Isle of Wight in southern England.
This was not going to end well unless he got help quickly. Grabbing his cell phone, he didn’t give a second thought about who to call. His father. Never mind that he was over 4,000 miles away in Dubai.
His dad immediately relayed Mark’s mayday to the Coast Guard, which had an installation less than a mile from Mark’s mishap and made a helicopter rescue within twelve minutes.
When in need, is your first impulse to call your Dad?—“Abba, Father” (Rom 12:15).
“Call to me and I will answer you” (Jer 33:3).
“In the day of my trouble I will call to you, for you will answer me” (Ps 86:7).
When you pray “Father, help me,”
you activate God’s 911.