Why then do we feel so alone at times? Where does God go? We'll find out.
We will start with Jesus talking to his disciples:
JN 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble.
What is he telling them? Jesus is telling them that trouble is normal. That doesn't seem right? You hear some people claim that if you believe in Jesus all your troubles will be over. That is not what Jesus teaches. He says we will have trouble.
So how does that fit with feeling alone? We'll see. Let's read on.
1PE 1: 6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
God wants to know that we are real. He allows for trouble to come into our life. He doesn't want phonies, he wants the real thing. It is easy to say you love God when everything is good. How about when it is not? But we are guaranteed that we will be rewarded for hanging in there. That doesn't mean that all our troubles are tests. A lot of them are just normal everyday life. A lot of them we bring on our selves.
JAS 1:2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
According to the above, it strengthens us. It makes us able to deal with things better in the future. You have heard the saying: No pain, no gain. It applies in our spiritual walk also. For us to become what God wants us to be, he has to shape us and make us mature. That can hurt.
It says to consider it joy. Be happy in trials? I don't think it means be happy while you are going thru them, I think it means be happy in what it turns us into. Its like practicing for a race. You work hard and train hard, that isn't fun, but the joy is in finishing and knowing what you have accomplished.
What does this have to do with being alone? Well if you are like most of us, when you go thru stuff like this you start feeling alone. A lot of times you start wondering where God is at. Is he still there or are you doing it alone?
Lets read and see what the Bible says.
HEB 13: 5 …… God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." 6 So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"
The above verses tell us that God will never leave us or forsake us. That must mean that he is there in our troubles. How come we don't feel like he is there so many times then? Because a lot of us don't turn to God when we need him most. That's when others need to do it for us, we need to call on our brothers and sisters in Jesus.
Please read the following verses very slowly and think about what they say:
PS 32:7 You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.
PS 91:9 If you make the Most High your dwelling-- even the LORD, who is my refuge-- 10 then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent.
PS 91:11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
PS 91:14 "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
PS 91:15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
PS 91:16 With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation."
So what's the answer to our question?
God doesn't go anywhere. He is always there no matter how we feel or what we are going thru. If we love him and believe in him he promises that he will always be there. The above verses promise us that we are never alone and that he will help us in time of need.
That is what we need to hang on to in times of trouble. That is what will help us get thru it and help us stay strong.
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