Always means ALWAYS

“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Emanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”” Matthew 1:23 NKJV

It’s the week after Christmas, 2022. This season my attention has been intently drawn to Emanuel. The birth of Jesus, the incarnation of God, brought a new and different level of “God with us.” And so we celebrate at Christmas His coming to earth.

For decades I’ve celebrated God becoming part of mankind through the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. And I’ve also known that Emanuel includes God being with me individually. But I am not sure that I have totally embraced the magnitude of that.

When I consider that God is with me in light of other scriptures, I am literally shaken. The Amplified Bible records Jesus’s promise to us:

“and lo, I am with you always [remaining with you perpetually—regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion], even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20 AMP

So…when I accept Christ, He is with me perpetually?

In every circumstance, on every occasion, in every situation He is ALWAYS with me? Think about that.

I believe that our God has always wanted to ALWAYS be with us, even before He came as Christ or sent the Holy Spirit to dwell with us.

David knew this when he said: “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me.” Psalms 139:7-10 NKJV

What an amazing opportunity! But what an awesome responsibility.

Everywhere I go; every situation I am in; every encounter I have; God is there with me. ALWAYS, the spirit of God, the power of God, the love of God is there available to me. How often do I recognize that? How often do I tap into that resource? And how often do I just try to make it on my own?

But, there are times that I look back and would rather He had not been with me. How often have I taken Him to places that made Him grimace? I guess He was there when I got so upset that some moron cut me off in traffic. He must have been there when I complained that my soup wasn’t hot enough. And there was that movie I watched, that I really wish I hadn’t. He was there, too. Can I make God uncomfortable by some of the situations in which I put myself…and Him?

If I were truly aware of His presence…

Would I have seen a missed opportunity to spread His love when we went to breakfast at Crackin’s this morning? Could I have better reflected His spirit when I discussed the undone repair with the maintenance guy at our condo? Or did I just move along forgetting that He was with me?

I’m getting ready for 2023. Can I truly grasp that God is ALWAYS with me and tap into His presence more often in this coming year? Can I more often allow the consciousness of His presence to guide me?

God is always, and perpetually with me. Wow!

Please follow and like us: