God Is With You In The Darkness

We all will face times when life seems dark. Depression. Hard marriages. Persistent battles with sin. Spiritual heaviness. No matter what causes the darkness, what would God say to those who struggle to find hope in their current circumstances?

Waiting for the not yet

The scriptures are full of all kinds of promises from God that eventually come true. For instance, God promises the children of Israel the promised land, they inherit it 40 years later (due to their own sin). God promises a savior, Jesus doesn’t come for a few hundred years. On and on we could go.

What provides hope for us in the middle of our waiting? When we know the promises God has for us but they have not come to fruition?

No matter what is making your life dark, we have the hope of Romans 8:28 - “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” But we must admit, life is most dark when what is causing our suffering has not been “turned for good” yet.

You are not alone

How easy it is to become convinced God is not good because his timeline is different than ours. May I encourage you to hold onto the hope of Romans 8:28 and then preach to your heart the truth of Matthew 28:20 - “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

When you are in the place of waiting, what could be more helpful and comforting than the fact that Christ Himself is with you? This struck me a few weeks ago while I was driving.

For me personally, I am always weary of thoughts or ideas that pop in my head being “from God”, because I never know what is from me or from Him or from the Devil. When what comes to mind is a reflection of scripture, it’s usually a safe bet.

It had been a hard day and there was a looming difficulty ahead of me that seemed daunting. I hadn’t really prayed about it on the drive, but it was occupying my heart. Out of nowhere this thought popped into my head “I am with you through it all”, which echo the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:20 to His disciples before He leaves them. A message of comfort that no matter what they face, they are not without His presence within them.

That brought me comfort, that Christ was with me. That He saw and was aware of the difficulty. That He had not left me alone, but out of care for me was going to walk the journey with me. His walking with me is not contingent upon wether my circumstances get any better or not. Now that is a promise that holds within the middle ground of waiting for your suffering to end or be redeemed.

Be encouraged

No matter what you are facing, God sees you. He has been with you in every lonely night, He has heard every prayer you have said and knows every tear you have cried. He is with you. The same Jesus who walked through the wilderness being tempted for 40 days is with you when you face temptation. The same Jesus who wept when His friend Lazarus died weeps with you when you are in grief. The same Jesus who carried the heavy burden of pressure of ministry is with you while you manage your stress.

Jesus is not unaware of the pressures of this life and has promised to walk it with us. Someone to always talk to.

You are not alone.

Perhaps the question is, how aware of His presence are we? What are you doing to be aware?

Thankful for the comforting presence of Jesus,

Josh.