A classic set-up in old-time cowboy movies was to have the good guys be chased into a box canyon by the bad guys—steep canyon walls on three sides and no way out. It’s where the saying “He was boxed in!” originates. Of course, in the movies the good guys always find a way to escape and survive.

On more than one occasion in the Old Testament, a king of Israel or Judah felt boxed in by surrounding armies. Vastly outnumbered, slaughter seemed inevitable. In such cases—when all human alternatives had been exhausted—the kings would turn to the King of Heaven in prayer. King Jehoshaphat did just that when Jerusalem was surrounded by three enemy armies. You can read his prayer in 2 Chronicles 20:5-12. But his last words are those which we should take to heart: “Nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”

When you find yourself boxed in by life, do what the kings did: Pray and ask God for His solution and deliverance.

When I pray, coincidences happen, and when I don’t, they don’t. 

William Temple