God Is with Us

God is with us. The word says

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah (Psalm 46:1-3).

Have you ever laid awake with a heavy burden? It’s hard to sleep with troubles on your mind. Sometimes the warfare for my peace gets so fierce it drives me from bed to my knees and to my Bible, crying out for help. I clutch hold of scriptures, pouring verses declaring God’s power, protection, love, mercy, and whatever else I need to remember into my soul to overcome the barrage of thoughts and emotions. Eventually truth pushes out worry, and I can get some rest.

Maybe your troubles don’t hit you at night. Whenever they come, though, I want to encourage you to know you’re not alone, and you can have peace.

Isaiah says Jesus was “acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3). Several places in scripture refer to Jesus being moved with compassion when He observed someone suffering. Remember His response to the person with leprosy in Mark 1:41, the widow in Luke 7:13, and the multitude in Matthew 14:14 (read over these when you have a minute). Indeed, Jesus’ greatest demonstration of love for people was His own crucifixion, giving His life in payment for our sin. These stories of His compassion show He also cares about other aspects of our lives. Lamentations 3:22-23 gives us the oft-quoted scriptures, “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” Every morning, day to day, we are shown new mercies. I’m glad the scripture says “mercies” plural instead of mercy because I have lots of different stuff and lots of repeats that require the plural version.

Knowing God is near to us in our troubles is deeply comforting. Psalm 46:1, as quoted earlier, says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 34:18 says, “The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” The book of James tells us if we draw near to God, He will reciprocate. James 4:8 states, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” Present. Nigh. How beautiful to think of our Heavenly Father being near to us.

One of the more profound times I recognized the Lord’s nearness was a time I was deeply hurt and shoved the cork down hard on my heart, bottling my thoughts and emotions. I dreamed I was sitting on the edge of my bed weeping utterly as if someone had died. The Lord allowed me to have that dream to minister to me in a very isolated place so I would understand He was with me and could release the locked-up pain. The dream made the Lord feel near and present. Knowing He was with me in that secret pain eased the weight of it.

I am abundantly grateful and glad to report that, while He sits with us in our troubles, our Heavenly Father also helps us through them and empowers us to overcome them. He does the heavy lifting. Psalm 91:15 says, “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.” Psalm 147:3 says, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”

Philippians 4:6-7 instructs, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving are more than spiritual disciplines and shows of devotion. Unified, these become an offensive and defensive weapon. As we pour out our hearts to Him, bringing our requests and thanksgiving to God, a supernatural spirit war goes down. The enemy attacking our souls gets the door shut on his face. (Yes, on it. Smash.) When we dump all the stuff out of our souls to God, making our requests and giving Him thanks (and we might be hot messes doing it), He does what we cannot do for our own souls. He gives us peace that does not make sense naturally speaking; peace that guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

“Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward,” says Job 5:7. When troubles come, as Job poetically tells us they will, we have a very present help in God. God is with us. Remember next time your burdens are weighing on your soul that God is with you.