One of the earliest signs of growth toward maturity in a child is the desire to do things without any assistance.  We encourage this trait of independence in our children, praising them when they can do something by themselves.  A wise parent continues to work until the child no longer needs the parent in order to function in life.

    Exactly the opposite situation exists in the spiritual life.  God doesn’t want us to operate our lives without His help.  He not only wants to be a part of everything we do, He wants to be the source.  He wants us to rely on Him for everything.  I have to keep learning that.

    In the summer of 1984, Pat and I moved from the Houston area to the place we now live.  We did the basic move with the help of a number of friends, for whom we were very grateful.  But we have so much junk, that it took us a number of additional trips to get everything transferred.

    Our oldest son gave me an old pickup truck to haul things in.  It was not in the best of shape, but I was glad to have it.  I loaded it down a number of times and brought things up here.  Most of those trips were at night, and since the truck was old and temperamental, I prayed a lot as I drove.  I asked for the Lord’s protection, and I asked Him to keep the truck running.  I prayed for help constantly each trip, until I topped a rise about three or four miles from Centerville.  When I topped the rise, I could see the lights of the gas stations at the turnoff.  And when I saw the lights, I relaxed and stopped praying.  I knew people in Centerville.  And if the truck quit, I could walk from there.  In other words, I no longer needed to pray for God’s help.  I could do it myself.

    Every time I did that, the quiet inner voice of the Spirit rebuked me.  He pointed out that I still needed God’s protection and help even though I could see the lights.  Even though I knew people and could walk the distance, I was not free to declare independence from God.

    It’s good to be able to tie your shoes all by yourself.  But it’s not good to try to live the Christian life alone.  The Holy Spirit was given to be our helper.  We need to admit our helplessness, declare our dependence, and let Him do His work.