I AM WITH YOU




Are you having thoughts that something needs to change in your life? Do you have a sense that you are stuck in a cycle where you never have enough hours in the day and stability always seems to be just beyond your reach? Have you lost sight of your future? Then it’s time to consider your ways. If your priorities have gotten tangled and your motives are all messed up it’s time to do some spiritual house cleaning and remember God’s promises.

There is a simple, yet profound and powerful, promise that you should understand and it is found in Haggai 1:13, “I am with you,” declares the Lord. This means that God isn’t waiting for you at the finish line of life, he’s with you right now, on your tangled messed up journey. He’s with you every moment of every day. This is true not just when you are at a church service, but it will be true when you go to work or school the next day. It’s true when you struggle with temptation and discouragement—he is with you.

Other places in the Bible reinforce the Haggai promise. The last words Jesus spoke to his disciples were, “And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20) The writer of Hebrews reminds us that God said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” (Hebrews 13:5) There was a time when you would see a bumper sticker that said, “God is my co-pilot.” A lot of people made jokes about it. I say it points to a mental habit all Christ-followers should get into—God is right here beside me. You’re not out there on your own working for him, but you are working with him. He is walking with you all along your journey.

This kind of knowledge of God’s presence in your life should motivate, inspire, and energize you to move forward in life with confidence. When Haggai proclaimed that God said, “I am with you” he stirred up Judah’s leaders and the people’s spirits and sparked their enthusiasm. Where they were once lazy and unmotivated and self-centered, upon hearing the Word of God they turned back to him and began to acknowledge his daily presence in their lives and with great enthusiasm began rebuilding the house of God.

When you begin to acknowledge the presence of God, and walk in the presence of God, he will do the same for you. He will spark your enthusiasm to do the work you’ve been called to do. You don’t need to be tentative of the future, because God’s spirit is in you. Please, write down this phrase. Read it and repeat it as many times throughout the day as you need to: The Lord is with me. Then live like you know it.


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