God With Us

Sitting on the couch, the Christmas tree lights glowing in the stillness of the early morning, and the words caught my eye. We have them hanging on our wall, as a reminder.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Straight out of Joshua, chapter 1.

The last part echoed in my mind . . .

“With you wherever you go.”

Do you know how many times this very idea is mentioned in Scriptures?

“It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not leave you or forsake you . . .” Deuteronomy 31:8

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me . . .” Psalm 23:4

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble . . . The Lord of hosts is with us . . .” Psalm 46:1,11

“Where shall I go from your Spirit? O where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, You are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me . . .” Psalm 139:7-10

“The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth . . .” Psalm 145:18

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand . . .” Isaiah 41:10

“‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call His name Immanuel’ (which means, God with us) . . .” Matthew 1:23

“And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age . . .” Matthew 28:20

“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, to be with you forever . . .” John 14:16

“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him . . .” John 14:23

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God . . .” Revelation 21:3

Remarkable. Quite astonishing, actually.

From the very beginning of Scripture, right up to the very end of Revelation, God reminds us that He is with us. The promise made to Joshua thousands of years ago still stands today. And for His people, it will be true for all eternity.

This truth has been a balm for my soul during the darkest seasons of my life. The God of the universe is with me.

Reading in Micah recently, I found myself praising Him for this very reason. In Chapter 7, verse 8, it reads, “When I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me.”

I cannot tell you how many times this has been true for me. It doesn’t say if I sit in darkness; it says when I sit in darkness.

Darkness. Will. Come.

It’s inevitable. It’s part of living in this fallen world. There will be incredibly difficult seasons of the soul.

But we don’t sit in the darkness alone. The Lord is a light to us.

Let that truth sink in.

He even repeats this very idea in John, chapter 1, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

He is Light, and it cannot be overcome by darkness.

There was a particularly difficult season we walked through after living overseas for a while. A group of us found ourselves displaced unexpectedly and wondering what in the world was next. We couldn’t see the way forward, and it often felt like we were walking through a dark cave with no end in sight. We joked that there were many days we wanted to sit right down in that dark cave, give up and quit, and let the candle just burn out. (I honestly laugh looking back at that time in my life. I thought that was hard and looked especially dark. It didn’t come close to the seasons of darkness ahead for us!)

I’m so very thankful for His Word, though. The truths of Scripture kept us tethered to Him while we waited in the darkness. He was our Light. And He eventually led us out of that dark cave, into the next part of our journey overseas.

And He has proven to be a Light to us over and over again.

When we found out our youngest would be born with significant disabilities and all we had known as a family was being ripped out from under us, the nights were long and restless . . . almost suffocatingly so. But God was with us. The only thing that got us through that season of uncertainty was His Word and worship on repeat in our ears. Letting the Words of truth and the words of others be our voice when we didn’t even know what to say.

When our youngest finally arrived, during surgery on his first day of life, weeks spent in the NICU, and becoming familiar with medical things I never dreamed I’d be doing for a precious child of mine, God was with us. He never left our side, spoke peace over our fragile hearts and minds, and illumined each step of that dark path with His Light.

With each subsequent emergency, frantic trip to the ER, hospitalization, God was with us. He stays right there with you through it all, bringing to mind His promises and reminding you this isn’t our forever home. All the pain and suffering will cease when we dwell in His glorious presence one day.

You get the idea. Each and every time we find ourselves sitting down in the darkness, completely spent emotionally and mentally, wondering how in the world we will take the next step . . .

He is there, just as He promised.

Wherever we go.

Holding us.

Always.

What a perfect time to reflect on this truth. Can you think of any other God who comes near? Makes a home with His people? Never leaves? And promises this for all time?

It’s one of the the greatest wonders of the gospel message.

God came near.

God made a way.

God with man.

Next time you find yourself sitting in the darkness. And maybe that’s today, right now. Remember . . . you are not alone.

As we close out yet another Christmas season and look to a new year, hold on to this beautiful truth. Though He is the only true God, infinite and holy and righteous and just and Creator and before all things and King of kings and Lord of lords and Redeemer and Savior . . .

He is also Immanuel, God with us.

Light in the darkness.