March 19

God Is with US

“God is with us” – a fact we’ve been taught since our first day in Sunday school. From Adam and Eve’s garden to Noah’s rainbow, Moses’ burning bush, and Jesus Himself, God has shown Himself to be present in the lives of His people.

And we are His people.

This means that He is with us – whether we feel it or not. With all the things happening in the world today, we need Him more than ever, but sometimes it doesn’t feel like He is listening. Sometimes it feels like He isn’t here.

He is.

One of my favorite poems is of the woman who dreams of walking down the beach with God, following the path of her life. When she looks back, she realizes that there were times in her life that only one set of footprints were visible. She then realizes that those times were the hardest times in her life. Hurt, she asks God why He abandoned her in her time of need, when He had promised her He would always be there. God then turns to her and says, “"The times when you have seen only one set of footprints in the sand, is when I carried you."

I’m sure we all have days when it feels like we are the only ones here, like our footprints are the only ones in the sand. When I have a day like that, I remember this story. Even though the woman couldn’t feel Him carrying her and couldn’t see that His footprints were present, He was there, holding her up and giving her strength.

Sometimes God doesn’t make it obvious that He is with us. He can’t burn a bush every time he wants to talk to us, or give us each our own garden so that we may be closer to him. We need to listen and trust that He will stay with us through the good and the bad, even when we can’t feel or see Him. That rainbow He sent to Noah was a promise – a promise for all ages, for all people, and for all time – that He will be with us 100 percent. For He is God, and He is with us.

Krystal Stevens