You Are Not Alone
I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! Psalm 139:7
There are times when, as we grow spiritually and work on our healing, we will have our high times and low times. At our high times we feel spiritually strong and close to the Lord, reading the Word daily and praying fervently. We take each day as it comes whether good or bad, and praise God for being there, thanking Him for the good days and seeking Him to get through the bad days. In those high times, no matter what comes at us, we weather the storms and continue moving forward applying scripture to our situations.
When we hit the low times where the storms are stronger and we struggle to control our emotions. It usually starts out with preoccupation with work, school, family, relationships, illnesses, financial problems, world problems and more. You go from fixing your gaze on Christ to watching the waves of problems surrounding you. You want to pray and read the bible but you get distracted away from it, promising to do it later, but later never comes or you shoot up a quick prayer. In time, you can feel yourself sinking into the sea of emotion…fear, anger, anxiety, depression, insecurity, jealousy, etc. In your storm it can be hard to see clearly and as you begin to sink into that sea of emotion, you begin to feel that old fear of losing control come over you. Even though you may have prayed, you begin to have doubtful thoughts when you don’t see an answer to your prayer. At this stage you wonder where God is and why is He letting the storm harm you. You wonder why He isn’t saving you even though you’ve prayed and instead He is allowing you to drown. As you begin feeling that old fear getting stronger you begin to question if you are truly alone and may reach for whatever brings you immediate comfort…that drink or drug, food, shopping, an old habit or someone from your past. You reach out to someone or something that can offer you a quicker way out of the problem instead of the One who guided your through your previous problems and healed you. In the past when God worked in your life, it took more time but the outcome was much better and more permanent. But presently, before you know it, you are back to square one because you feel God isn’t there for you anymore and do not trust Him to help you.
That’s an extreme low time and though there are many who choose to trust in God and wait out the storm, there are many more who are overtaken by fear and can only hear the lies of the enemy telling them that “you won’t make it”, “God has left you” or “you messed up and that’s why God is not helping you”. Once you begin to believe it, the lies get louder and stronger telling you that you are alone and there is no way out. You then sink even further into the sea of emotion which is right where the enemy wants you.
The truth is, we are not alone. Even when we stumble and stray, God is still with us. Even when fear begins to attack us, God is with us. Even when we feel we aren’t as strong as we used to be and feel spiritually dry, God is still with us. He is with us through our mistakes and ugliness. No, God does not tolerate consistent sinning, but He knows when we are battling and He is with us in every battle we go through because as Psalm 139:7 states, we can never escape from His spirit and we can never get away from His presence. There isn’t a place on all the earth we can go where God can’t see us. He sees our problems, He hears our cries and prayers, He feels our pain. Waiting on God can sometimes feel a bit scary because we live in a world of time limits and if we fail to meet that time limit, problems can arise. Yet, when we learn to trust in God completely, time waits for Him because He is our great Creator.
“I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.” Psalms 40:1
“Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.” Psalm 27:14
When fear tries to overtake you and make you think God has left you and you are alone, remember the mile markers…all the times in the past when God has helped you through each battle you faced. Remember the promises of scripture, that He will help you if you wait patiently for Him. Also remember who the one is battling you and why. The enemy will always try to make you feel as though you don’t have a choice and must act now (impatiently) instead of waiting for God’s direction or for Him to handle the problem. This is when you must be more determined to stand your ground on the Word of God. Praise God on the mountain top as well as in the valley and you will overcome your fear and weather the storm.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” Psalm 32:8
“The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Lamentations 3:25-26