A young pastor, giving his first sermon, announced nervously:  “I will take for my text the words, ‘And they fed five men with five thousand loaves of bread and two thousand fishes.’” Which is exactly backwards. Upon hearing the misquote, an old man in the audience said quite loudly, “That’s no miracle -- I could do it myself.”

The young preacher said nothing, but the next Sunday he announced the same text and this time got it right:  “And they fed five thousand men on five loaves of bread and two fishes.”

He waited a moment and then, leaned over the pulpit and looked at that same old man and asked, “And could you do that as well, Mr. Smith?”

“Of course I could,”  Smith replied

“And how would you do it?”  the preacher asked.

“With the leftovers from last Sunday,”  Smith said.

“I can do it myself!” The cry of every child trying to grow up. Getting help is often seen as a sign of weakness. Only the weak have to have help doing what they ought to be able to do by themselves, many declare. We live in Montana where the pioneering spirit is strong. The pioneers had to be self-sufficient;

Living alone on the land didn’t favor those who couldn’t make their own way. That same spirit lives still today, but few of us live alone. This is necessary for a child because he has to learn to take care of him- or herself. But they would never grow up without help from their parents, teachers, friends, and many others.

We still have the pioneering, can-do spirit – and that’s not a bad thing – but remember: Lewis and Clark would never have made it to the West Coast and back without a lot of help from the Native Americans, trappers and others. They were can-do people, but they needed – and accepted a lot of help. This is true in everyday life – and in our spiritual lives. Truth is, we need a lot more than just some help here and there to grow up spiritually. We need something more.

An out-of-towner drove his car into a ditch in a desolated area. Luckily, a local farmer came to help with a big strong horse named Buddy.

He hitched Buddy up to the car and yelled, “Pull, Nellie, pull!” Buddy didn’t move.

Then the farmer hollered, “Pull, Buster, pull!” Buddy didn’t respond.

Once more the farmer commanded, “Pull, Coco, pull!” Nothing.

Then the farmer nonchalantly said, “Pull, Buddy, pull!” And the horse easily dragged the car out of the ditch.

The motorist was very grateful – and very curious. He asked the farmer why he called his horse by the wrong name three times.

The farmer said, “Oh, Buddy is blind and if he thought he was the only one pulling, he wouldn’t even try!”
Maybe we need to be a little more like Buddy – not blind – but willing to accept a partner in all that we do. Charles Fillmore, in Teach Us to Pray, on page 147 wrote, “If you want to be possessed of every good thing in the world, take God as your partner, incorporate His mind into your mind. . . I would say to every one who wishes to demonstrate prosperity: take God into partnership with you and you will demonstrate abundance.”

Teach Us to Pray, pg. 40, “We should bear in mind that God is our silent partner and that His wisdom and strength, His energy and skill are ours to use.”

Myrtle Fillmore, Healing Letters pg. 112, “You have a store.  Have you taken God into partnership with you?  Do you start every day with quiet, purposeful communion with God?  Do you really ask God to show you just what to do in each and every transaction?”

Charles Fillmore, Talks on Truth, pg. 12, “You cannot use God too often.  He loves to be used, and the more you use Him the more easily you use Him and the more pleasant His help becomes.  If you want a dress, a car, a house, or if you are thinking of driving a sharp bargain with your neighbor, going on a journey, giving a friend a present, running for office, or reforming a nation, ask God for guidance, in a moment of silent soul desire.”

A father was explaining ethics to his son who was about to go into business: “Suppose a woman comes in and orders $100 worth of material.  You wrap it up and give it to her.  She pays you with a $100 bill.  As she goes out the door you realize she has given you two $100 bills.  Here’s where the ethics come in.  Should you or should you not tell your partner?”

Part of our problem is that we keep things from God – and that’s funny – do we really believe we can keep anything from God? Charles Fillmore, in Talks on Truth, on page 12 wrote, “Nothing is too wicked or unholy to ask God about.” If we are unable to hide our darker sides, what benefit is there in refusing God’s help? He continues on page 13, “If you are doing things that are considered wicked, you will find swift safety in asking God first, then acting or refraining, as you are moved.  Some people act as if they thought that they could hide themselves from the one omnipresent intelligence, but this is the conclusion of thoughtlessness.  God knows everything you do, and you might just as well have His advice.”

Not only “Might just as well have His advice,” it is the only way to bring light to the darker side of humanity. Humans have been on the planet now for 200,000 to 500,00 years, depending upon our definition of what is human. After at least 200,000 years, we are still killing each other at terrible rate and for terrible reasons. There is no doubt we need help, and it isn’t coming from the human race.  Divine intervention is absolutely essential.

Matthew 7:7-8 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. [8] For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

We first have to ask – about anything and everything in our lives – and seek – we have to look for the answers, for God’s answers to our questions. And then we must knock – we must take action. We must follow the answers that God provides to our questions. But first, and most important, we must ask, we must converse, we must share our lives with God, for God has, and is, sharing life with us.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson
“Speak to Him, thou, for He hears, and Spirit
with Spirit can meet --
Closer is He than breathing, and nearer than
hands and feet.”