Friday’s Reflection
OUR DIFFICULTIES MAY REMAIN, but we no longer have to carry them alone. God will not leave. God will not fail. God is an ever-present God.
- Diana C. Derringer
Hope: It’s More Than Wishful Thinking
From p. 34 of Hope: It’s More Than Wishful Thinking Copyright © 2010 by Fresh Air Books. Used with Permission. All Rights Reserved. http://www.upperroom.org/bookstore/. Learn more about or purchase this book.
Today’s Question
What does it mean to say that God is ever-present? Share your reflections.
Today’s Scripture Reading
The prodigal’s father said, “This son of mine was dead, but now he is alive; he was lost, but now he has been found.”
- Luke 15:24, gnt
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This Week …
- Special Need:
- This Week: Pray for missionaries and their communities. Add your prayer to the Prayer Wall.
- Tips for Your Spirit:
- Lent is traditionally a time for fasting. But fasting can concern things other than food. Try Creative Fasting.
- Saints, Inc.:
- This week we remember Patrick of Ireland (March 17).
- Lectionary Readings:
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With God being ever present – it means beyond what my mind can fathom that it means. It means confidence, reassurance – which should equate to stillness. Still working on that in my life. I did catch myself in an anxious moment yesterday – and realized the futility of it all, and just lifted a quick prayer to Him, confessing that I was letting the devil have a bit of a hold on me momentarily – and called out for His steadiness.
God is ever present – To me that means what it says that He is always there with you for everything and every need and in your moments of joy and happiness. The bible says that He will never leave you. And I believe it. Because He says it. Amen
God is ever-present…this is something I need to remind myself everyday, even when things in my life don’t seem to be going well, He is still right there beside me…guiding me, giving me the strength to carry on.
Ever present God to me is the living God, who is able to keep all his promises for us because He overcame the power and fear of death and evil, arose from the grave and lives for ever, lovingly caring for us.
God is present, in the midst of my tragedies and my triumphs – He was even there when that old man sexually abused me as a child.
That truth made me so angry for a little while when i was going through counseling – if God was there why didn’t He stop it?
As we worked through it, i began to understand that God allows these things, not because He has no choice, but because He gave that man free choice, and the man chose to sin.
That God was weeping as the man sinned, i have no doubt, and that God was protecting me from further damage, i have no doubt, because He has protected me from the fulness of the memory, so that i can’t remember the physical pain of the injury to my little body. Oh what a gracious God, who stands in the gap, and bares our sorrows, and carries our burdens, our sins and iniquities on the cross.
As a small child, i had no choice, but now i do – i can choose to forgive the man for his sin, or i can be unforgiving, and carry my unforgiveness, keeping myself a prisoner to the pain of the past.
Oh, how much easier to lay it at the cross, and look to the God who sees me, and trust that He will take even the worst of what the enemy of our souls means for evil, and turn it to good, for His glory.
Because He’s been there, He was there, and He will be there, with me forever.
For He has promised, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” and “lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.”
Tori, our prayers are with you and I can read your pain even now. Lord, we don’t understand the valleys and the pains you bring us through, but through is the word Lord. We thank you for bringing us through the fire and helping when our crosses seem to heavy to lift. Hold Tori close to your heart Lord and let her know your Love and peace. Hug her tightly Father, Amen.
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