How God is With Us in Hard Times
Scripture — Isaiah 43:2-3 (NRSV)
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
For I am the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
Focus
Through the prophet Isaiah, God promises to be with us even in hard times. This is good news. But sometimes we struggle to believe that God is truly present. In these difficult seasons of life, God is often with us through the people of God who love us with truly divine love. This means, by the way, that we have the opportunity to help hurting people experience the loving presence of God.
Devotion
In yesterday’s Life for Leaders devotion, we were encouraged by the good news that God is with us in hard times. The Lord once said to the Israelites through the prophet Isaiah, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.” (43:2).
This is a reassuring promise, to be sure. But, if you’ve been in treacherous waters or blazing fires, either literal or metaphorical, you may wonder how God was with you. And if God was with you, why didn’t God help out in your time of need, delivering you from danger, suffering, or sadness?
Scripture teaches that God is with us even when we cannot perceive God’s presence. God is watching over us as a good shepherd. God dwells within us through the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we struggle to experience or even affirm God’s presence. But if we base our faith on what God has revealed, then we know that God is with us.
God’s presence is often made real to us through the people of God. Years ago, my father was dying slowly from cancer. My family and I were caring for him at home, which was perhaps the hardest task we had ever taken on together. It was physically demanding, to be sure. But even more so it was emotionally draining. We were trusting God and believing that God was with us, but sometimes it was very hard to sense God’s presence.
A few months before my dad died, some folks from our church came to visit my dad and talk with my mom. “We want to bring you dinners every night for as long as Dave lives and for a couple of weeks beyond when he dies,” they said. My mom was hesitant. “But he might live for several months,” she said. “That would be over a hundred dinners.” “Then that’s what we’ll do,” the people from the church responded. And that’s exactly what they did, for more than three months.
The meals we received varied in quality. Lillian spent a whole day making a sumptuous roast beef dinner. John grabbed a bucket of chicken from CPK on his way home from work. Yet, no matter what we were eating, it tasted. But even more importantly, it felt like the very presence of God. Those dear folks from the church were in “God with us.”
After my dad died, one of my sisters said to me, “When dad was so sick and dying, I really couldn’t feel God’s presence at all. I think I would have lost my faith completely except for those people from church. They helped me to feel God’s love. They were like Jesus to me.”
Yes, they were like Jesus! When we speak of God being with us, we think most pointedly of Jesus, the one who was and is Emmanuel, God with us. Jesus is the Word of God Incarnate, God in human form. Though Jesus is not present with us today in bodily form, he is still with us. He is with us through his Spirit. He is with us through his people. He is with us when we are rejoicing and when we are sorrowing. He is with us when we sense his presence and even when we don’t. Remember what Jesus said at the end of Matthew: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (28:20). Jesus is with us… always! Believe this good news!
Reflect
Can you think of times in your life when you sensed God’s presence through the people of God? When? How did they convey God’s presence to you?
Have you ever been used by God to reassure others of God’s presence? If so, when? What did you do? What was that experience like for you?
Do you need to know that God is with you today?
Act
Think about the people in your life who need to know God is with them today. Is there anything you might do to help them be reassured of God’s presence?
Pray
Gracious God, again we thank you for the promise that you are with us. You are with us in the good times and in the hard times. Thank you for being with us in the midst of the rising waters, the raging rivers, and the flaming fires.
Yet, you know, Lord, that sometimes we have a hard time perceiving your presence. When we’re suffering, when our lives are falling apart, we wonder if you are there. You can seem so hidden at times, so invisible. Help us in these times to really know that you are there.
Thank you, O God, for being with us in Jesus. Thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us and among us.
And thank you for the way your people can represent your presence. Help us, dear Lord, to be those people for others, whether we are reaching out to flood victims or showing concern for the person in the office next to us. May people sense that you are there through us.
To you be all the glory! Amen.
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: God’s Presence In Our Struggles at Work (Psalm 23).
Mark D. Roberts
Senior Strategist
Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Strategist for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders,...