It seems like many believers believe that walking with the Lord takes a lot of work and experiencing His blessings is even more work; that can make a relationship with the Lord tiresome or illusive. I completely understand, because many times I have prayed and prayed and prayed and it seems like the Lord is not listening or is too busy to respond. I have gone to Him, needing Him to act and fight my case but He seems to move really slow when I know He is a just God. I can say that many times it has led to frustration, but I thank Him anyway, because over the years it has created a greater dependence on Him, and He has taught me what trusting Him means. One of the things He has taught me is that by His very nature He cares as He relentlessly stands for me against a person that is described as a ravenous wolf, a roaring lion the devil of devils, who by His very nature is a slanderer, and a liar because there is absolutely no truth in him (John 8:44). This person goes to heaven day and night seeking to destroy me (Revelation 12:10; Job was not an exception to his rule). The question is how is He caring for me when it seems like He is not?
I relentlessly keep these things in mind. Jesus lives in us through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, who is His Helper, with no plans of ever leaving us (Ephesians 3:14-19); “…….He will be with you forever.” (John 14:16-17; Ephesians 1:13; John 10:28-30) The Holy Spirit intercedes for us, especially in our moments of deepest pain (Romans 8:26). Jesus remains sitting at the right hand of God (a place of honor and power; serving as our lawyer when Satan comes to God, something Job did not have) so that we do not experience more than we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:12). He only allows these trials because He uses them to mature us (James 1:2-4), and to refine our faith (1 Peter 1:3-11) and then He blesses us eternally for not giving up on Him (James 1:12; Revelation 2:9-10). Christ knows that if we trust Him, we will make it because of “He who is within us” (1 John 4:4) and if we choose to walk by faith and not by sight, He will place angels around us who form a seal, and a hedge around us (Psalm 34:7; Hebrews 1:14) which forces Satan to heaven where again Christ is at God’s right hand. So, there is no pain, or hardship the Lord does not know about. The issue again is, will we trust His plan for our maturity and keep the faith? (2 Corinthians 5:7)
God has taught me throughout these years to live inside out. Whatever I am going through, I learn what it means from the outside but how I respond is from my strength which is all that the Spirit means on the inside. By Christ’s very nature it is impossible for Him not to love us.
