Because He's With You (With You-part 2)

Lately, I’ve been meditating on the fact that God is always with me. He’s with me as I care for my family. He’s with me while I take care of the house. He’s with me every second of every day, and I’ve been trying to remain conscious of that. The other day, while at work, I reminded myself that God was with me in that moment, and then He spoke to me. He said, “Because I’m always with you, my benefits are always with you.”

Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Psalms 103:1‭-‬5 NKJV)

He showed me that as He is with me, His benefits are with me…and this is something that we should never forget. His forgiveness is always with us. His healing is always with us. His redemption is always with us. This is good news. This means that we can seek Him, and receive His benefits at any moment…wherever we are. This revelation brings so much joy and comfort to me.

Because He is with us, His protection is with us.

Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ (Isaiah 41:10 NKJV)

In the face of the unknown and the uncertain, God tells us not to fear. Why? Is it because there’s nothing to be afraid of? Is it because everything is perfect and nothing can harm us? No. We live in a fallen and imperfect world. We live in a world with danger all around us. But, our Father wants us to understand and be conscious of the fact that because He is with us, He protects us wherever we go.

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.” (Deuteronomy 31:8 NLT)

I want us to take a second and think about what this means as we go about our daily lives. We are never walking this earth without His protection going before us. When we drive to the grocery store, His protection goes before us. He knows every step we’ll make before we make it. Even when we think we’re being spontaneous, He has already made preparations for us. He has ensured that His protection proceeds our every move.

So what does this look like? Sometimes it looks like us not getting the position that we prayed for. Sometimes it looks like the heartache that we wish we never had to go through. Sometimes it looks like the street light that we missed on the way to work, or us losing the keys right before an important meeting. These are all disappointing situations. These are all scenarios that drive us crazy. But, we must understand that our God will move heaven and earth to protect His children.

For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone. (Psalms 91:11‭-‬12 NLT)

Most of us don’t walk through life thinking about the angels that protect us, but I want to share an experience from my own life, as a testament. One day, we were running late for my son’s taekwondo class. I don’t remember the reason why, maybe I couldn’t find the keys, maybe he ran back inside because he forgot something. Regardless of the reason, I remember how frustrated I was. I am a punctual person; I absolutely hate being late. But I’ll never forget what happened that day. We were almost there...about to get in the left turning lane. And right before our eyes, we saw an ice cream truck flip over the median from the other side of the road. And guess where it landed…in the turning lane that we would have been in if we had left the house just a couple of seconds earlier. All I could think about at that moment was that we should have been there…But God. I’m tearing up as I write this because if it were not for the protection of God, myself and my children might not be here today. I was disappointed that we were running late, but God moved heaven and earth to make sure that my children and I were safe.

Disappointment is oftentimes the result of God’s protection over our lives.

Maybe we can’t see it in the moment. Maybe while we’re going through the situation, we would give anything to change what happened. But have you ever looked back on a disappointment and realized that it was the protection of God at work? Have you ever thanked God in hindsight, for loving you enough to keep you from what you thought was a good idea? God isn’t in the business of making sure that we are happy with every move He makes. Don't’ get me wrong, He cares about our feelings; He wants us to be happy in life. But He knows what’s around the corner, and we do not. We can only make decisions from what we can see, and He is making decisions for our future. At the end of the day, His priority is making sure that we reach the place that He’s prepared for us. He wants us to stay on the path that He’s laid out for us. Is this not what we really want? For His vision to come to pass in our lives?

Because He’s with us, His grace is with us.

We all have weaknesses. We all have things that we wish we were better at. Maybe we wish we had more patience at home with our families. Maybe we wish we were better at handling our finances. Maybe we wish we were better equipped to walk in our callings. Whatever our weaknesses are, God’s grace will make up the difference.

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (II Corinthians 12:9 NKJV)

When we get the understanding that because God is with us, His grace is with us, everything changes. Instead of feeling ill-equipped, we can walk confidently knowing that we are equipped with His Spirit, and there is nothing that He can’t do. There have been so many times when I felt like I didn’t have what I needed to do what God called me to do. But every time, His grace made up the difference. Every time, He proved to me that my weaknesses mean nothing in the presence of His strength.

Now for a moment, I want you to think of a weakness that you have. In what area of your life do you feel that you are at a disadvantage? What are you not good at? Where do you need to improve? Now…the next time you are faced with that weakness, I want you to remind yourself that God is right there with you. And because He is with you, His grace is with you. This means that when you feel weak, you have access to His strength…His wisdom, His knowledge, His ability. In the moments that you don’t know what to do, ask for His help. Ask Him to cover you with His grace. Ask Him to enable you to do the things that you can’t do on your own. And then, trust that He will come through for you.

I can give you so many examples of this in my life, but I will share just one with you. A few years ago I worked as a pastry chef and cake decorator…most of the time decorating custom cakes. And because the cakes were custom, I almost always had to pull off something that I had never done before. I remember feeling inadequate at times, like I didn’t have the expertise, experience, or ability to do what I needed to do. But each time I faced an obstacle at work, each time I felt too weak to get my job done, I asked God for help…and He always came through for me. He gave me the ability to be creative, artistic, and detailed. Each time I looked at the finished work, I was amazed that I was able to create something so beautiful.

Because He is with us, His favor is with us.

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands! (Psalm 90:17 ESV)

The favor of God is the tangible evidence that His grace works in our lives. It can be seen when we’re able to do things that are unlikely or even impossible. Have you ever received an unlikely opportunity? Have you ever been successful at something that everyone else failed at? Have you ever surprised yourself with a new ability or skill that you never had in the past? That is the favor of God at work in your life. His favor sets you apart from everyone else…you are special, unusual, one in a million. It doesn’t matter what anyone else says. It doesn’t matter what they’ve experienced in life. Their failures and weaknesses are not a reflection of what you are capable of. You have the grace of God going before you. You have His strength working within you. You can reach purpose, even if it seems impossible. You can walk in your calling, even if it seems impossible. You are not alone. You don’t have to rely on your strength. You have access to His protection, His grace, and His favor whenever you need it, because He is always with you.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for being with me in every moment of every day. Thank you for reminding me that because you are with me, your protection, your grace, and your favor go before me. Thank you for reminding me that it doesn’t matter what my limitations are, because your strength will enable me to do anything that you have called me to do. Today, in faith, I declare that I will follow you wherever you lead me. I will not allow my fears to stop me from walking in my calling. When I am afraid, I will remind myself that you are by my side, I will ask for help, and I will trust that you will come through for me. I love you Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.