Sometimes when we pray, when we beg God for answers or healing or provision or repentance, it seems as if His answer is “no.” Even when we know that answer may actually be “not yet” or “not this way,” the pain of this world can be brutal and impossible to bear. But even when the answers are not what we so desperately want, God is still with us. He may not give us our earthly desires, but He never walks away. He stays. He is with us.
My friend Sara Frankl heard God’s “no” many times during her short life. Plagued by a terminal illness and chronic pain, she was eventually left home-bound and, frequently, alone. Unable to leave her home or escape her broken body, she had every human right to resent her situation, to call it a prison, to really soak in her solitude.
Instead, she turned to the God she knew never left her side. She leaned on Him, knowing that no matter His answers, His arms were always firmly around her. She faced the hard reality of her illness and her life, but still she said . . .
“If this is my life, if this is where I am, then this is where God is, too.”
She knew that no matter what, God is with us. And in these post-Christmas days I am reminded that no matter the season, God is with us. Wherever we go, whatever we face, God is with us.
He is with us. He is with YOU.
What are you facing today? Are you seeking answers or relief or healing or strength? Have you received the news, the diagnosis, the announcement that left you feeling lost? You are not in this alone. God is with you. Whether this year brings you something brilliant and beautiful or something traumatic and devastating, God will be with you. He will hold you and comfort you and stand with you.
God is with you. God is with us all.
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This post originally appeared at Incourage.
