‘And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered’

Joel 2:32

Why do I not call on his name? Why do I run to this neighbor and that, when God is so near and will hear my faintest call? Why do I sit down, and devise schemes, and invent plans? Why not at once roll myself and my burden upon the Lord? Straightforward is the best runner–why do I not run at once to the living God? In vain shall I look for deliverance anywhere else; but with God I shall find it; for here I have his royal shall to make it sure.

I need not ask whether I may call on him or not, for that word ‘Whosoever’ is a very wide and comprehensive one. Whosoever means me, for it means anybody and everybody who calls upon God. I will therefore follow the leading of the text, and at once call upon the glorious Lord who has made so large a promise.

My case is urgent, and I do not see how I am to be delivered; but this is no business of mine. He who makes the promise will find out ways and means of keeping it. It is mine to obey his commands; it is not mine to direct his counsels. I am his servant, not his solicitor. I call upon him, and he will deliver me.