Sometimes, it’s just you and God
On May 24, 2006, I was watching Beth Moore on TV and writing in my journal. Beth is a gifted writer, speaker and Bible teacher. She is nationally and internationally renown. Her and her husband live in Houston, Texas where she leads “Living Proof Ministries.”
On that May morning, Beth said something that left a profound mark on my life. “Sometimes, it’s just you and God”. There are seasons of great sorrow when it literally doesn’t matter who is around you and what they are doing (or not doing) because you will have to go through the deepest parts of your suffering, just you and God.
“He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.” Psalms 126:6 [+/-]
I have never been truly alone. I have never wanted to be. Being alone scares me. I have never lived alone. I travel the world within a committed family and a pack of trusted and beloved friends. I have an inward desire for deep relationships. I seek out ways to support others. I have encouraging people around me. I am by all definitions a groupie.
On that day, God revealed to me that there will be significant battles in my life that will require me to press into Him like I have never known before. In the darkness, stillness and coolness of the night, I won’t have any other place to go except to Him. And that will not have been a mistake. It will have been God’s intent all along.
In those moments of surrendering my life and my problems to Him, I will be making a choice to not rely on the world first to bring me comfort, resources or guidance. I will not be relying on my intellect, life experiences or my feelings. During those times, I will come to know that God is everything to me and more.
“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 [+/-]
When I go to God first and allow Him to be everything, the truth is that it is then that He brings complete comfort and enduring peace through the most creative and unexpected people, circumstances, and resources. It is not that He doesn’t want me to be well, whole and healed. It’s just that He wants to do it. When I seek other things and people before God, I may receive some temporary relief. I may be better for a short time, but it will not last. And I will not be any closer to God.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 [+/-]
I am learning to have faith for myself. God rewards our faith by not only meeting our needs, but by allowing us to share our testamonies (built from our “tests”) with others during their times of need.
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 [+/-]
Can we really show others “true faith” if we don’t press into God and allow Him to first and foremost meet our own needs during our own darkest times?
Do we really accurately show who God is and what He is capable of if we give people, circumstances, flukes, our own perceived good judgment, credit for getting us through our biggest storms?
One of my very closest friends on the planet received a diagnosis of breast cancer in March of last year. She has undergone radical surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and more. She just shared with me that when she initially got the diagnosis, she thought of all her family and friends and thought “as a team” we will get through this. But almost immediately, God started to show her that it would be her faith in Him alone that would sustain and nourish her each and every step of this very long (and still continuing now) journey. That is not a cruel God. This is a trustworthy God. God has cared for her in more ways than can be counted. She has been a true blessing to so many other women fighting breast cancer. God has been healing her while working through her. But she had to go to God first. She had to stay with Him always. She had to have faith for herself. And He has and continues to reward her heartfelt, spoken and demonstrated faith. Everyday, she lives out her faith in sharing her own story.
“And without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6 [+/-]
Whatever you are going through right now, do not be alarmed if it’s just “you and God”. In those moments when you are not sure that you can go on, have faith that God is enough. Whether you can see any hope in tomorrow or next week, know that God is right there with you every step of the way.
Because sometimes, it’s just you and God. It’s the way that it’s supposed to be. And God has and will bless you beyond your wildest imagination and expectations.
Finally, I am so grateful that it’s often………………..just me and God.
bpatton said:
I find myself in that position of just being me and God. It’s hard to be there, but it also is great. I have always asked the question why does success have so much suffering involved? And each time a problem is solved a smile gives me my answer. I will trust God through this current situation and will allow him to use me; so that others will be saved. Thank you Jesus!