Throughout history God has proven Himself to be a "GOD WITH US", time and time again. From Genesis to Revelation, we see Him as very PRESENT in the lives of His people. He was present in the beginning, at creation. Genesis 1:1 says, "In the beginning God".
John 1:1 says,
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made."
Now drop down to verse 14 of the same chapter ~
"The Word (Jesus) became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."
Again in the New Testament in Matthew 1:22-23 says,
"All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a Son and they will call Him Immanuel" ~ which means, GOD WITH US."
In the Old Testament, in the garden was God not with Adam and Eve? (He walked with them in the cool of the day) What about with Noah, with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? What about Moses? The Israelites? (As God lead them out of Egypt, on dry land through the Red Sea) Was God not with them in the desert? How about as He lead them into the promise land? What about Gideon? What about Samuel the prophet? You name some! There's alot more!
In the New Testament was God not with Joseph and Mary, as Herod pursued them to kill the child (baby Jesus)? Was God not with the Magi, when He warned them to go back another way? Was He not with the disciples? When Peter walked on water? What about with Paul when he was in prison? How about doubting Thomas? Did Jesus not come, so Thomas could see His hands and feet and believe? Thomas didn't believe, yet Jesus came!
Look at the very last verse in the Bible, Revelation 22:21 says,
"The grace of the Lord Jesus be WITH GOD'S PEOPLE. Amen." With who???
From our birth, we bear His finger prints, as He created our inmost being and through out our lives on this earth, until our death, we see His intimacy continues as a God who is WITH US.
Psalm 139:13-16 says,
"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in mother's womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be."
He never leaves the side of those He loves: He holds, He guides, He counsels and then takes us to glory!
Psalm 72:23-24 says,
"Yet I am always with you; You hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward You will take me to glory."
God is WITH HIS PEOPLE till He takes us Home! God knows us completely, better than we know ourselves. He loves us with an everlasting love!
Psalm 139:1-12 says,
"O Lord, You have searched me and You know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thought from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; You are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue You know it completely, O Lord. You hem me in ~ behind and before; You have laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast."
As we walk through this life on earth, we may have many trials and sorrows, but we DO NOT WALK ALONE. God promises to strengthen, to help, to uphold. God keeps His promises!
"Fear thou not, for I am WITH THEE, be not dismayed; for I am thy God, I will strengthen thee; yea, will I help thee, yea will I uphold thee, in the right hand of my righteousness."
Psalm 89:14-16 says,
"Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; love and faithfulness go before You. Blessed (happy) are those who have learned to acclaim You, who walk in the light of Your presence, O Lord. They rejoice in Your name all day long; they exult in Your righteousness."
Do you acclaim Him? Have you learned the secret of walking in God's presence? Do you know Him? He can be known!
Deuteronomy 31:6 says,
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord Your God goes WITH YOU; HE WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU nor forsake you."
One of my favorites, Hebrew 13:5 (AMP) says,
"Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money (including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions) and be satisfied with your present (circumstances and with what you have); for He (God) Himself has said, 'I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. (I will) not, (I will) not, (I will) not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let (you) down (relax My hold on you)! (Assuredly not!)
I want you to know, no matter what you're going through, at the moment, that God loves you and is WITH YOU! You may feel He's forgotten you or that He is far off., but He is not! Whether you are going through difficulties at work or at home, in relationships, illness, or whatever you are experiencing, God is a very PRESENT help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1) God is going to take you by the hand and lead you THROUGH it, if you will seek Him. It may be scarey and you may feel afraid, but God wants you to enjoy peace and rest in Him, in the midst of it all. I know you just want Him to take it all away! But trust Him, He has a purpose for what you are enduring! He will use it for good! Be patient! Wait on Him!
You may be, saying, "Sheryl, you have no idea what I'm going through! I can't even share with others what's happening to me; it's too embarrassing; I'm not even sure how I found myself in such a dark and lonely place."You're right, I don't know what you're going through, but I've been in some of those dark and scarey places before myself. Places that I felt Satan seem to be winning ground and I felt lost and like I was falling into a deep and dark pit. It may be complicated, but God knows the way out!
2 Corinthians 10:13 says,
"No temptation has seized you, except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."
Psalm 40:1-3 says,
"I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and the mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and put their trust in the Lord."
Psalm 46:1 says,
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."
You may be saying, "Well, Sheryl, there's no way out of this mess! My life is in ruins! You may be right about a mess, but I promise you, my friend, that WITH God, all things are possible, there is hope! Please don't look at your life without God in the equation! Leave room for a miracle! For God to comfort, to cleanse, to refresh and renew! Leave room for God to work it out in you and for you! Put your hope in Him! Don't trust in what you see, but trust in the unseen! Trust God!
Psalm 77: 1-9 says,
"I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted. I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. Selah
You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak. I thought about the former days, the years long ago; I remembered my songs in the night. My heart mused and my spirit inquired: 'Will the Lord reject forever? Will He never show His favor again? Has His unfailing love vanished forever? Has His promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has He in anger withheld His compassion?'"
My friend, the place where you are may seem so dark; you may, even, feel like you've lost sight of the Lord who you once lived for, but God has NOT lost sight of you! I promise, if you can't see Him it's because He's carrying you! God is gracious, turn to Him and cry out for His help, He will give you what you need, not what you deserve!
Psalm 71:19-21 says,
Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God, You who have done great things. Who, O God is like You? Though You have made me see troubles, many and bitter, You will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth You will again bring me up. You will increase my honor and comfort me once again."
Though it may not feel like it, my friend, this too shall pass! God knows where you are, though, you may feel all alone, He is WITH YOU! Seek Him! He promises to be found by you! (Jeremiah 29:13) Draw near to God and He promises to draw near to you!
Years ago, I found myself in a dark place, afraid and not knowing what was going on inside of me. I found myself in a very scarey place and wasn't sure how I got there! I trembled, as I told the pastor, my father in-law, at the time, that I didn't know if I could stay for the morning service. Lol. All the sudden he started the service early, people were looking at their watches!
Things didn't change over night ~ it was complicated! And the question that I hated the most was ~ How are you? It was innocent and caring question and, often, wasn't even expecting an answer. But it tormented me, because I knew I wasn't okay.
If you're reading this and you're not okay . . . I want you to know that God knows about it! Give Him time to work, hold on a little longer! Be honest and tell Him what you do know! Then trust Him to change what you can't! Find one person that you know you can trust and confide in them! It's okay to need help, we've all been there at one time or another. I'm praying for you! If you're reading this and it doesn't apply, PRAY, because there are those to who it does!
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