I previously wrote about how those who are strong and how they must take care of how they help those that aren’t as strong. I would like to address the flip side of this coin.
I’ll start with a story about my son Josh and me. One day, I had a minor surgical procedure done, and Josh was my driver. After my release, he drove me home and went to his room. I was still tired and sore from the surgery, but I was also hungry. Since I hadn’t eaten all day, I realized that if I wanted a meal, I’d have to prepare it myself. I walked by Josh’s room and asked if he was hungry; he said yes, so I cooked for both of us. Later, when this came up in conversation, I asked him why he didn’t offer to help. He replied that I was the strongest person he knew, the idea that I might actually need help was a foreign concept to him.
We all do this. Maybe we don’t do it in this capacity, but there is someone in your life that you consider strong. You may bring all your problems to them. Have you ever considered that they sometimes need help? Or that maybe what they are carrying has gotten heavy. Because I don’t care how strong someone is there will come a point that they need help.
Jesus is a prime example of this. The disciples were used to Him solving all the problems. They were used to Him having the answers and carrying the load. So much so that when He needed help they went to sleep. He was in the garden of Gethsemane in deep prayer with everything that He was facing looming in front of Him. He said unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch (Mark 14:34 KJV). That should have been enough to gain their full attention. This should have caused them to stand alert and support Him. Instead they fell asleep. Jesus needs help again later carrying His cross. Simon of Cyrene is ordered by a soldier to carry it for Him. If Jesus needed help then trust me everyone is going to need help at some point.
The Garden of Gethsemane was at the Mount of Olives. This is where a man met David while he fled Jerusalem due the Absaloms revolt. This man, Hushai, met him in mourning. David convinced him to return to Jerusalem and pretend to be loyal to Absalom, essentially acting as a spy. In one of David’s darkest hours he wasn’t met by a general or giant killer, but his friend showed up to help him carry this load. David that faced Goliath, David the warrior, David the man after God’s own heart needed a friend. When listing the mighty men of David in Chronicles we read that Hushai the Archite was the king’s friend (1 Chronicles 27:33 WEB). All the valiant men listed, but it was important to note that Hushai was his friend.
It is important for us to remember that even the strongest people that we know will need help one day. This is why weightlifters have spotters. A spotter isn’t there because the weightlifter is weak; a spotter is there because the weightlifter is pushing limits. The spotter doesn’t have to be stronger than the “strong” person; they just have to be there in case they are needed.
We must not let someone’s strength become a blind spot that causes us to miss the moment their load becomes too heavy. Because even the strongest people need spotters sometimes.
Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 (NIV) “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
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