Last Monday, I got three different messages from good men who needed help.

• The first was a man who was in a tight spot financially. He needed to come up with over twenty thousand pesos right away and he was asking if we could help him. Carla and I talked about it. And since we both knew him and trusted him and his family, we felt like it was a good idea. I met him later that night and gave him what we could.
• The second was a man who had looked at something on the internet that was causing him to sin. He had already confessed it to other important people in his life and I was one of them. He was asking for prayer in following James 5:16, which says, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” No one would have ever found out, but he knew he needed help.
• The third was a man who was becoming irritated and offended with one of his workmates. I called him to give him advice, and he said, “Yes, I know what I need to do. I know I’m being insecure. I just needed to hear someone say it to me. Thank you.”

What’s common among these men is that they needed help and they weren’t too proud to ask for it. Contrary to what some people think, asking for help doesn’t make you weak, incompetent, or, for men, less manly. In fact, a person who doesn’t ask for help is usually the one who fails because they have no one to help them.

Why are so many people trying to project an image of perfection or self-sufficiency? We know that no one is perfect, but we go to great lengths to pretend we are. I’m not saying to let the whole world know about your problems on a social media post. But do have a trusted group of wise and godly men and women who know you inside and out?

If you need help with anything, don’t wait till it’s too late. Ask for help. You’ll be surprised how much easier your life is because you did.

If one falls down, his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!

Ecclesiastes 4:10 (NIV 1984)