“So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

- Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

Sometimes it’s hard to remember that God is always with us. At times, we may feel as though God has abandoned us or that He has left us adrift in a sea of worry and fear. If you are feeling like this, I want you to know that you aren’t the only believer to ever feel that way.

At a few times in my life, I’ve felt as though God abandoned me, even though I knew in my heart that He never leaves us or abandons us. Typically, I’ve felt this way when I faced a crisis at a time when my walk with Jesus was nearly nonexistent due to personal sin, pride in wanting to do things my own way instead of God’s way, or just simply ignoring the Holy Spirit. And I can tell you from personal experience that when you face a trial apart from God, it’s like being stuck in a snowstorm with no GPS or compass to get you home.

Dallas Willard talks about how important it is to keep up with our daily spiritual disciplines in his excellent book, “The Spirit of the Disciplines”. In it, Willard likens facing trials without a strong personal relationship with Jesus to an athlete who attempts to play in a championship event without ever training to prepare. He wisely points out that it’s our daily walk with God that brings us strength and allows us to face life’s trials (of which, Christ told us we would face many) with His peace and comfort to see us through.

The good news is that God is both faithful and merciful. If we would only turn to Him, repent, submit to His will, and seek His face, we’ll find all the strength we need. But, we must be careful that we don’t become “foul-weather Christians” of the type who only run to God when we’re in trouble (I’ve been guilty of this myself). This sort of Christianity is exactly the type that gets us in trouble in the first place. Instead, we need to be in God’s word and praying each and every day, as well as participating in worship and fellowship with other Christians regularly.

Remember, God’s love is eternal, but we were created to be in relationship with Him. Yes, God is always with us, but if we choose to ignore Him there’s no way we can experience the loving peace of His presence on an ongoing basis. Seek His face daily and He will lift you up and carry you through all the difficulties you will face in this life.

And the best news is, by accepting His Son as your personal Savior and believing in Him, you’ll have eternity to thank God for all He’s done for you.

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.” – John 6:47 (NKJV)

This article blessed me in so many ways when I read it:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35086396/ns/health-cancer/

“Chandler is trying to suffer well. He would never ask for such a trial, but in some ways he welcomes this cancer. He says he feels grateful that God has counted him worthy to endure it. He has always preached that God will bring both joy and suffering but is only recently learning to experience the latter.

Since all this began on Thanksgiving morning, Chandler says he has asked “why me?” just once, in a moment of weakness.

He is praying that God will heal him. He wants to grow old, to walk his two daughters down the aisle and see his son become a better athlete than he ever was.

Whatever happens, he says, is God’s will, and God has his reasons. For Chandler, that does not mean waiting for his fate. It means fighting for his life.”

What a demonstration of maintaining faith in the midst of suffering.

Matt, you and your family are in our prayers.