“But now, this is what the Lord says__he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:» Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the water, I will be with you; and when pass through the rivers; they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, the flame will not set you ablaze”
Isaiah 43:1-2.
God is Always There!
“You tell me, is God still alive? Is He still up in heaven to see what befalls me?” these said a mourning woman in a movie I recently watched. She had just uttered the words of sadness and bitterness we constantly hear when one is sore distressed. I could still remember her weeping sorely over the death of her husband and unique son who died from a fatal road accident. She lost what she thought seemed everything to her, and possibly the reason for her existence. She now was to confront what she had always feared__loneliness and solitude.
Realistically, that is common with the humans that we all are. Losing a loved one is just a part of the losses we could experience throughout our pilgrimage on this planet. There are much more. With life predicaments that range from loss, to the death of the loved ones, or to sickness, just to mention a few, most times we believers are not exempted. Like that woman in the movie, we also ask God “are you still in heaven and seeing what is befalling me? Lord, why me?”
While problems are real and most times inevitable, but more real is our God, being in control, bringing comfort and hope in our lives. God is always there. Knowing this truth would fill your life with His love.
OUR WORLD IS SICK OF PROBLEMS
Since the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, our world has been plagued with many problems--- little and great ones. Although that wasn't God's initial intention for creation, however, sin, death, sickness and poverty have become our daily routine. In Job 14:1, the Bible tells us how sick our world has become, and how struggling for survival would man be during his sojourn on earth. Man's lifespan is very short but full of troubles. This is not experienced by the ungodly alone. Sometimes, believers in Christ find themselves in there. Couldn't it be the reason why the Psalmist says: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivereth him from them all?”Psa.34: 19 KJV.
Problems range from one degree to another. That's what we could learn from the chapter's main text. We see the Prophet Isaiah talk about “river” “waters” and “fire”. These suggest nothing but the degrees of the problems we could know. “River” is stream-like water. Running from one end to another, there are commonly found in hometown. It's not deep neither dangerous. It's calm. This portrays some problems we go through in life.
Around us, things may seem calm. People may not even notice anything wrong with us. However, we are in problems or pains.
Whereas with “waters” the effects are different. Waters here speak of seas or ocean. So great waters. Here are found waves, storms and any other tropical or sea wind blowing. At this stage risk are many and could be dangerous to sailors. This also depicts another dimension of problem. Here, pressures are high and can no longer be minimized. It can no longer be covered. We could faint or have our minds blown off. Lastly, the “fire” is the most dangerous and ultimate problem a man can know. It burns. It could lead into confusion. Any problem that could lead you into confusion is “fire-like”. Nevertheless, understand that God will never allow us to face the problems that are higher than we can bear. Our problems are proportional to our strength 1Cor.10: 13. Even if we fail to know that, God is right there with us to see us through.
GOD KNOWS US
Most times our trial times, or problem lead us into much thinking. One of the thoughts some of us could have is the question of whether God truly knows us. This thought generally comes up when we consider that what is befalling us is unfair. However, whether in good or bad times God knows us. More importantly, He knows us by our name Isa.43: 1. This reveals also His closeness and companionship with us.
In the Bible we read how God called persons by their names. One of them was Jacob or Israel Isa.43: 1. That was a way for Him to let man know that He knows everything about him and cares. Calling an individual by his name sends a lot message into his systems. In times of crisis, the devil would always want us to believe that God has forsaken us and doesn't know us or cares. He would come to whisper to your heart “If God loves or knows you, why do you experience all these?” That devil is a liar! Here, our maturity in the things of the Spirit would play a major role. Our closeness to Him is of a great help to defy the enemy in times of contrary circumstances. Knowing that God knows us would bring peace, thus much comfort to us, even though in the midst of adversity. It would fill us with the consciousness of His love and that He is in control working out His perfect plans for our lives.
