No, Never Alone!
For the past eleven days, we’ve been on the road for three missions conferences and a one-day meeting. From Georgia to Tennessee to North Carolina, we’ve visited four different churches and stayed in two hotels and two prophet’s chambers. It’s been exhausting and exhilarating all at the same time, and during our trip, I’ve been reminded that spiritual lessons don’t only occur inside the church building.
As we settled into the bed on the first night at one of our hotels, we turned out the light and immediately heard the rustle of plastic.
“Was that you?” Jason asked.
My heart skipped a beat as I squeaked, “No, I thought it was you.”
We lay quietly in the bed, and the sound returned though this time with more vigor. The noise was coming from the floor on Jason’s side of the bed (better his than mine!), and in the darkness, Jason stated the obvious. “I think we have a mouse.” Wonderful!
We turned the light back on to investigate, and sure enough, a certain critter (who was hidden at this time) had gotten ahold of Jason’s snack cake wrapper and was trying to fit it through some unseen hole in the wall. Just lovely! Uncertain what we could do about the critter and unwilling to change rooms at this time of night (it was after midnight, after all), we decided to do our best to ignore the greedy rodent and go to sleep. Easier said than done.
As we turned off the light once more, it was only a moment before we heard another rustle, only this time the sound was emanating from the trashcan across the room. Evidently, the critter had found more treasure he wanted to take home to his family. As I tried to calm my nerves and relax, the rustling in the trashcan was accompanied by more rustling from under the bed. So, either we had one gigantic mouse who was able to occupy the space under the bed and the trashcan across the room, or there was more than one rodent in our hotel room. Honestly, I don’t know which idea gave me the creeps the most.
I lay as still and quiet as I could, trying to determine exactly how many other occupants there were in the room. It didn’t take long before I came to the conclusion that I was never going to be able to get to sleep despite how exhausted I was.
But then, Jason had a wonderful idea. He turned on the fan in the room. It was noisy and dried out the air in an instant, but it also drowned out the noise of the rodents in the room. And oddly enough, not being able to hear them gave me enough peace to be able to drift off to sleep.
I remember thinking the fan wouldn’t make a difference because even though I couldn’t see or hear the mice, I still knew they were there. But as soon as the thought hit me, another one drifted in behind it—I can’t see God, and sometimes I can’t hear Him, but I still know He’s there. And I believe it was that comforting thought that allowed me to drift off into blissful slumber.
“Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
“Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he [it is] that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”
“Fear thou not; for I [am] with thee: be not dismayed; for I [am] thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
“Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.”
Over and over again, the Lord tells us He is with us and will never leave or forsake us. He is always present, always watching, always listening, and yes, always caring. Not a moment or situation of our lives passes by unnoticed. Though we may not see Him working or hear His voice, He is there. In the times we cannot feel His presence, we can find comfort in knowing we are never, ever alone. And it is this truth that gives us hope. Hope for a brighter tomorrow. Hope for victory over our circumstances. Hope for renewed strength and the determination to face the battle before us.
Knowing we weren’t alone in the hotel room made me feel uneasy because I didn’t trust the intruders who had invaded our space. Knowing I’m not alone in my daily walk through life, on the other hand, brings me peace because I trust the One who walks with me. His presence is never an intrusion. On the contrary, it’s a blessing. And what a privilege to know the God of the universe loves me and cares about me enough to walk every step of my journey with me.
Alone? No, never alone!
[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lU4_3zjLGM&w=640&h=480]
In a Little While
Today, I’d like to wrap up the lessons I gleaned from the Sunday morning sermon by Pastor Roger Morgan. A couple of days ago, I shared with you about the whispered prayers. Yesterday, we talked about Peter and the two fires. For now, let’s talk about “a little while.”
“A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father. ”
— John 16:16
Biblical scholars can’t agree on whether Jesus is speaking of His death or His ascension in this passage, for on both occasions, Jesus went to the Father and was absent from the disciples for a time. Honestly, it doesn’t really matter. Jesus knew what He meant, and that’s enough. The message is the same either way.
I want to look at the application of the verse in our lives rather than the interpretation of it in the lives of the disciples. How does this verse affect us? What can we glean from it?
In life, we (Christians) go through phases. Sometimes in our lives, we feel so close to the Lord, it’s like we can literally reach out and touch Him. Our walk is good. Our time with Him is precious. Doing His will is so easy because we want nothing more out of life than to please our Savior. We are so overcome by God’s love for us it moves us to tears. Sweet times. Precious times. Times we pray will never end. Times when we think, Yes, I’ve finally gotten the victory over my stinking flesh!
But then, there are the dry seasons. These are the times where God seems so far away, and no matter how often we seek Him, we can’t seem to find Him. The walk is a daily struggle to put one foot in front of the other. Our time with God looks futile because it seems we’ve arrived with a party of one. Doing His will becomes more difficult, and we wonder if it’s even worth it. We are so overcome by God’s absence that it moves us to tears. Hard times. Discouraging times. Times we pray will soon end. Time we think, What have I done to fall so far?
In John, Jesus told the disciples, “For a while, you’ll see me, then for a while, you won’t.” Likewise, we go through seasons when for a while, we see God at work in our lives, and for a while, we don’t. But does that mean God is not still there? Does it mean He’s not still working on our behalf? No, it means we FEEL like He’s not there or not working.
Feelings lie! God has promised He will never leave us or forsake us, no matter what our feelings tell us. He didn’t say, “For a while, I will leave you.” He said, “For a while, you won’t see me.” It’s not the same thing. Think about it, if we always saw God working, we would cease to grow. The Bible tells us “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) Things not seen! Though it seems our faith is greater during those times God feels so close, our faith actually grows during the times we struggle because we have to choose to believe God’s promises over our feelings. And when we choose to believe God, we increase our faith.
Now, I don’t know about you, but I much prefer the times when God feels close, and everything about my spiritual walk is precious. I don’t like feeling that God is nowhere to be found. I dislike the times I can’t see Him, but I know it is a necessary part of growth. After all, look at what happened to the disciples after Jesus’ ascension. For three years, they walked with Him on earth, and it seemed like they grew very little in the spiritual sense. But after Jesus’ ascension, these men turned the world upside down through their spiritual fervor. While Jesus was out of their sight, He was certainly not out of their mind.
Yes, the Christian life has seasons. Times we see God at work and times when He seems nowhere to be found. But the good news is, it’s just for a little while.
Behind the Scenes
When studying the Bible, it's important to notice everything. Who is the information about? To whom is it written? When is it written and even better, at what point in the overall "story" is the account placed? Take, for example, the wilderness wanderings of the children of Israel.
Beginning early in the book of Exodus, the Bible gives detailed accounts about the Israelites escape from Egypt and their continuing journey toward the Promised Land. While other characters and events coincide with their story, the children of Israel remain the main characters throughout the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy except on one occasion.
In the first verse of Numbers 22, we see the children of Israel pitched in the plains of Moab. Beginning in the next verse and carrying all the way through Numbers 24, the Scriptures zero in on the interaction between the prophet Balaam and Balak, the king of Moab. Balak pays Balaam (who is also a sorcerer), to curse Israel so they will be destroyed before overtaking his land. God intercedes and turns Balaam's blessing into a curse, which angers Balak and forces him to move on to Plan B. I encourage you to read through the account as it is enlightening and also quite humorous. The lengths to which these two men go to have their way is downright comical, yet sad.
Anyway, during that entire exchange, our main character--Israel--is completely ignored. Other than the fact that they were the object of Balaam's curse and the reason for Balak's fear, they're not even mentioned. To me, this is one of the sweetest and most comforting Bible lessons though it is easy to overlook.
What were the children of Israel doing while Balak and Balaam were plotting against them? They were going about their everyday routines, utterly oblivious to the fact that their enemies were ready to strike. They had no idea they were in danger. They were just living life the best they could.
What was God doing during this time? He was watching, but more than that, He was working. God gave Balaam the words to say. He turned the curse into a blessing. He prevented harm from coming to His children through Balak's cowardice attack. He was working, and the Israelites had no idea. Why? Because God was working behind the scenes.
Dear friends, there are troubles in this life we will never see because God has dealt with them before they ever reach us. How many times has He calmed storms we never knew were brewing? How many times has He stopped enemies we didn't even know we had? That alone is cause for praise, but I want to bring it a little closer home.
What about the trials we do experience, the ones He allows to pass through His hands? Even then, we can trust He is working behind the scenes to make things work according to His will. He hasn't left us to face the storm alone. He is there. He is working. He hasn't forgotten us or given up on us. No, the One who knows the beginning from the end is working all things for His glory and our good. And just as He did for the children of Israel, He will turn our curses into blessings, our mourning into dancing and our trials into triumphs.
“But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.”