Oh my goodness you guys, my heart is about to burst because Jesus is so amazing.
Any words I could come up with to try and explain how good, amazing, awesome and wonderful my Jesus is, just wouldn’t be enough. Kind of like when you try and take a picture of the Grand Canyon or a really beautiful sunset and the picture looks cool, but it doesn’t compare to the real thing. It doesn’t compare to seeing it with your own eyes… That is exactly how I feel when I say God is so good. It just doesn’t seem enough to accurately portray just how good He really is. He truly is indescribable.
My life is nothing short of crazy right now. It seems like when I cross something off my to-do list, 5 more things take its place. I feel as though I can never get enough done in a day. I have so many things going on that some days I feel so overwhelmed I don’t know where to even begin.
Maybe you are struggling with the same thing? And if you’re not today, I’m sure at some point you have felt this way. If you haven’t then you must teach me your ways! 😉
It can be stressful, overwhelming, and completely exhausting.
During the week I work as a nanny! It’s hard calling work “work” when it’s getting to hang out with two cute kiddos, Ellie and Ward. One is 8 months and the other is 3 months. They are so adorable, I love getting to take care of them!
Anyhow,
One afternoon at “work” last week I found myself with two crying babies on my lap. Not very often, in fact rarely, do they cry at the same time. However, that day they did. So there I sat, both babies on my lap, both of them crying, doing anything to keep their tired eyes open. I sat there, one baby laying their head on each of my shoulders, holding them, rocking, patting, shhh’ing…anything to help them relax and calm down. And eventually they did. Before I knew it I had two sleeping babies on my lap.
I don’t know if you’ve ever had a baby fall asleep in your arms, but it’s pretty precious. What can sometimes be a chaotic (and loud) situation quickly turns into a beautiful, beautiful moment.
And at the same time the babies were relaxing and calming down, I felt undeniably, a sense of Peace that can only come from my heavenly Father, that filled me to the very core. He turned a loud, stressful, chaotic moment in my own life into a beautiful one. The loud, stressful, chaotic, overwhelming-ness (I don’t even think that is a word!) changed to quietness. Rest. Relaxation. Peace. Comfort. Calm.
Here I was kicking and screaming (not literally of course) about all that is going on in my life, feeling so overwhelmed and stressed and just kind of freaking out about life in general. I was in the midst of my own “crying fit” that had gone on for several days when the Lord completely blindsided me in the midst of crying babies, embracing and holding me until I myself was calm.
Now, I know that sounds cheesy and stuff, but it is what it is! It’s hard to explain unless you’ve experienced it yourself, until then I just sound crazy. In that moment though, He reminded me that I do not have to do this alone, I cannot do this alone. And then He said, “I am with you.”
I don’t know why in the world I am so quick to forget this all the time. I hate that it is so easy for me to get sidetracked by my to-do list that doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. I hate that I let myself become stressed out and overwhelmed so easily. But more so, I hate that I let these things distract me from Jesus. I am so quick to focus my attention on the things right in front of me, that I lose sight of Jesus.
And that’s when I start slipping and falling. I become completely overwhelmed and lose all motivation. It’s exhausting, discouraging, and I become ineffective when I turn my focus away from Jesus.
I am ever so thankful for a gracious and patient God. When I am ready to run and hide, He holds me. When I feel I am in way over my head, He reminds me that He is there. He never once leaves my side. He never lets go of me. The Creator of the Universe, the King of Kings, the Magnificent One, the Great I Am, He goes with me.
And He is with you! Whatever you are going through today, whatever circumstance you find yourself in, whatever struggles you are facing, whatever your situation is today, the Great I Am, He is with YOU. Maybe you’re hurt, sad, afraid, lonely, heartbroken…. God is with you.
I recently read Zephaniah 3:17. It’s a familiar verse, one I’ve read many times before, but it really resonated with me on this particular day.
It says:
“The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”
And then yesterday, I read my devotional and guess how it started?!!
“I AM WITH YOU.”
I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve had these moments as I read through Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. I’ve never had a devotional that has been so relevant to me every single day.
Back to the point though – I get distracted rather easily!
–Here is an excerpt from my Jesus Calling devotional that day–
“I AM WITH YOU. These four words are like a safety net, protecting you from falling into despair. Because you are human, you will always have ups and downs in your life experience. But the promise of My presence limits how far down you can go. Sometimes you may feel as if you are in a free fall, when people or things you had counted on let you down. Yet as soon as you remember that I am with you, your perspective changes radically. Instead of bemoaning your circumstances, you can look to me for help.” –Jesus Calling–
And guess what one of the Bible verses listed was – Zephaniah 3:17!
Coincidence? I think not.
So I just want to encourage you in whatever you are facing today, no matter how big or small it may be, He is with you.
The Lord is with you.
He is mighty to save.
The Lord delights in YOU – The God of the Universe, the great I Am, HE delights in you.
He will quiet you with His love.
He rejoices over you with singing – You, yes you, bring great joy to the Lord!
I know that these four words “I am with you” are tossed out rather often. If you go to church at all, you’ve probably heard them on a fairly regular basis. Just in this blog I have said them several times.
But…
My prayer for you is that you wouldn’t just read these words and quickly dismiss them, but that you would find comfort in knowing that the Lord is walking with you. I pray that Gods peace that transcends all understanding would wash over you today. That you would find rest in His strong yet gentle embrace. I pray that His great love for you would surpass any worry, any fear, any stress in your life, any circumstance that you may find yourself in today.
“Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.” Psalm 37:23
The Lord your God is with you, He is holding you by your right hand, and He will never let go. May this radically change your perspective!
And for your viewing pleasure, take a listen to this song! 🙂
