Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Can I ask the Lord for help in my life?

A devotional dissection of Alma 37:37 

📜 37 Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.
                                               📒 Alma 37:37 

Alma 37:37 doesn’t just answer your question—it builds a pattern that shows asking the Lord for help is both invited and expected. The verse unfolds in three movements: counsel, good, and morning. Each one reinforces the same truth from a different angle.

1. “Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings” — You are invited to ask

The word counsel signals a relationship, not a transaction. Scripture consistently warns against acting without seeking God and promises blessing when we do.

📗 Josh. 9:14  shows the danger of making decisions “without asking counsel at the mouth of the Lord.”  
📗 Ps. 34:4(4,6,10) portrays a God who hears, delivers, and saves those who seek Him.  
📗 Prov. 3:5(5-6) teaches that trusting Him opens the way for Him to “direct thy paths.”  
📗 Lam. 3:25  affirms that the Lord is good to those who wait and seek.  
📕 Heb. 11:6  promises that He rewards those who diligently seek Him.  
📒 Jacob 4:10  warns against counseling the Lord, but encourages seeking His counsel.  
📘 D&C 3:4  reminds that God’s wisdom is greater than man’s.

Together they testify:  
We can ask. We should ask. Heaven is already leaning toward us.

Closing Summary — Counsel With the Lord

Seeking the Lord’s counsel is an invitation into relationship, not a mechanical transaction. Each cross‑reference reinforces the same truth: God responds to those who seek Him. Scripture warns against acting alone, celebrates those who trust Him, and promises that His wisdom surpasses our own.  

The pattern is simple and steady:  

▪︎ Ask before acting.  
▪︎ Trust rather than lean on your own understanding.  
▪︎ Seek, wait, and expect Him to respond.  
▪︎ Honor His wisdom above our own impulses.  

Together these witnesses affirm: Asking the Lord for help is not only allowed—it is the very posture He desires. Heaven is already inclined toward us.

2. “He will direct thee for good” — His help leads toward abundance

The cross‑references tied to good paint a picture of what God’s help looks like when it arrives.

📗 Ps. 144:15 — happiness rooted in belonging to the Lord.  
📗 Isa. 1:19 — obedience opens access to “the good of the land.”  
📗 Isa. 58:11 — God guides like an unfailing spring.  
📕 Matt. 6:33 — seeking His kingdom brings added blessings.  
📕 Gal. 6:9 — perseverance leads to reaping.  
📕 2 Pet. 1:8 — godly qualities cause life to abound.  
📒 2 Ne. 4:35 — God gives liberally.  
📒 Jacob 2:18 — seek His kingdom first, then all else finds order.  
📘 D&C 59:16 — the fulness of the earth is given to the faithful.  
📘 D&C 64:34 — the obedient “eat the good of the land.”  
📘 D&C 93:27 — fullness comes only through Him.

The pattern:  
When ww ask for help, God doesn’t merely respond—He directs us toward abundance, stability, and spiritual increase.

Closing Summary — He Will Direct Thee for Good

God’s direction is never neutral or minimal; it consistently bends toward abundance, wholeness, and increase. The scriptures we've gathered reveal a unified pattern: belonging to Him brings happiness, obedience opens access to the “good of the land,” perseverance leads to harvest, and seeking His kingdom first aligns everything else into its proper place. His guidance is steady like an unfailing spring, generous like liberal mercy, and expansive like the fulness He promises to the faithful.  

In essence: When we ask for the Lord’s help, He doesn’t just answer—He orients our life toward growth, goodness, and spiritual flourishing.

3. “When thou risest in the morning…” — Help is woven into daily rhythm

The morning references show that divine help is not occasional; it is rhythmic.

📗 1 Chr. 16:8(7-36) — give thanks and call upon His name.  
📗 Ps. 5:3 — morning prayer is a place of expectation.  
📒 Ether 6:9 — continual crying unto the Lord brings continual mercy.  
📘 D&C 46:32 — give thanks in all things.

The message:  
Asking for help is not a crisis-only practice. It is a morning posture, a daily orientation.

Closing Summary — A Morning Posture of Seeking God

Morning in scripture is more than a time of day; it is a pattern of turning toward God before anything else can lay claim to your heart. These passages show that gratitude, calling upon His name, expectant prayer, and continual seeking form a daily rhythm in which divine help naturally flows.  

The rhythm is simple: begin with thanks, lift our voice, expect His presence, and keep seeking through the day.  

The truth beneath it: Asking the Lord for help is meant to be woven into the ordinary cadence of our lives —steady, humble, and renewed every morning.

Putting it all together

Alma 37:37 answers our question with a resounding yes—but it does more than that. It shows how the Lord invites us to ask:

Counsel with Him — bring Him into every decision.  
Trust His goodness — His direction always leads toward life, abundance, and spiritual increase.  
Live in a daily rhythm — night trust, morning gratitude, continual seeking.

And the promise at the end seals it:  
“If ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.”

Asking for help is not weakness. It is covenantal alignment. It is discipleship. It is the way God shapes, protects, and lifts His children.

Closing Summary — Asking the Lord for Help

Alma 37:37 forms a clear, three‑part pattern that answers our question with spiritual precision: yes, we can ask the Lord for help—and He intends for us to. The verse gathers counsel, goodness, and morning devotion into a single rhythm of discipleship.  

First, seeking His counsel is an act of relationship. Scripture shows that God responds to those who trust, wait, and ask before acting.  

Second, His direction always moves toward goodabundance, stability, spiritual increase, and the ordered life that comes from putting His kingdom first.  

Third, the morning rhythm teaches that divine help is meant to be daily, grateful, expectant, and continual—not reserved for emergencies.  

Taken together: Asking the Lord for help is not a sign of weakness but a covenantal posture. It aligns our decisions with His wisdom, our desires with His goodness, and our daily rhythm with His presence. It is the way He lifts, shapes, and steadies His children on their path toward the last day.

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