Meet Scott Coy

A little over 33 years ago, I sat on the steps leading up to the nursery for our newborn son. I started to cry because I had no idea what it meant to be a godly father to a new baby. You see, I did not have a pedigree from a Christian family. The families I grew up around were not Christ-centered, and most of my peers were first generation Christians. We were all doing this Christian thing for the first time, and I was scared.

Crazy, right? By this time in my life, I had been leading hundreds of high school kids on trips all over the country, finished grad school, and gotten married. But children of my own? I needed help that could only come from a source much greater than me. I needed Jesus to rescue me and lead my family in an area where I was unprepared to lead.

Men and women throughout the Old Testament repeatedly found themselves in danger and called out to God to deliver them, save them, rescue them. Our psalmist in Psalm 119 was a man who recognized that his utmost need was to have God step in and take care of him. His concern about his enemies, though temporary, was very real. He needed God to be real and present in the same way I did 33 years ago, and just like I need Him today.

Consider the words the psalmist uses to seek the Lord: rescue, redeem, revive, plead my cause, remember me, remember your testimonies, remember your Word. Turning to the Lord should not be for a bailout or an action of last resort. Seeking Him should be our first action long before resorting to gimmicks, medicative habits, or fear.

The psalmist was scared but wise. He ran hard toward the waiting arms of the Great Deliverer. Today, Jesus is still delivering me on a daily basis. He is delivering me from myself and my need to be known or important or approved by men. The result of this deliverance is freedom. Jesus first. Everything else is a coping mechanism.