BellissiWarriors

I am here for you.

I’ve heard this many times from kind friends who want me to know that if I need something, they’re happy to help.  It’s nice to know we’re not alone as we go through life.  But lately I’ve been hearing this from a different source – God Himself.

Then when you call, the LORD will answer. ‘Yes, I am here’.

Isaiah 58:9

I AM.  This is God’s chosen name for Himself.  It describes His eternal nature.  He always exists in every moment throughout time.  He has no beginning and no end.  He will not arrive too late to help you.  He will not miss the opportunity to do what is good for you.

I AM here.  Here.  In this place.  In this moment.  Not far off and removed, somewhere up in the clouds.  Right here.  Right where you are.  At Christmas we celebrate the time of Jesus’ arrival on Earth.  That’s here.  And Mary and Joseph gave Jesus another chosen name – Immanuel – which means ‘God with us’.  Here.  His very name says you are not alone, because God is here.

I AM here for you.  ‘For’ is to be in favor of.  To be on the side of.  For the purpose of.  On behalf of.  God is here, in this moment, in whatever circumstance you are in.  He is here for you – on your side.  He’s here for the purpose of supporting and upholding you.  Not just humanity in general, but you specifically. Because He loves YOU.  He is here for you.

Do you get it?  Do you sense He’s not just saying “You can call me when you need something”?  He’s letting you know He is here in your darkest moment, in your neediest place, in your joy-filled hour, on your team, in your favor, on your behalf.

I AM is here for you.

In Ephesians, the apostle Paul reminds us “God saved you by his grace when you believed.  And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God” (2:8).  Grace is an undeserved gift.

We don’t just need grace one time, and then the rest depends on how well we perform.  God doesn’t pluck us from a path headed for destruction and put us on the path that leads to life with a pat on the back and a good luck, kid.  We don’t stay in God’s ‘good graces’ by doing a good job following the rules.

Instead, God says “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

He doesn’t say: ‘Without me you can’t do anything good,’ or ‘You can’t do anything worthwhile,’ or ‘You can’t do anything perfectly.’  He says, ‘Without me, you can’t do anything.  You need me for everything.’  He says He is the force behind our every move, our every breath.

God wants us to know that we can’t do life on our own.  That means He’s going to keep putting us in situations that are beyond us.  He’ll keep bringing us to the place where we cry out, “I can’t do this!”  Because He wants us to respond by turning to Him in dependence, in confident expectation that He will provide.  He invites us to admit our neediness and ask Him to come in and do what we can’t.  That’s what prayer ultimately is, and the Bible says when we pray, we come before the “throne of Grace” (Hebrews 4:16).  Then God says, “I know you can’t do it.  But I can.  So let me.  I’ve got this.”  When we need Him, when the only way we can do something is through complete dependence on Him, we keep our eyes fixed on Him.

Maybe you’re an “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” kind of person (Philippians 4:13). Strength is good. Weak is bad. Strength empowers us to push on through difficult situations. Sort of like the Lord is a spiritual energy drink that will give us a second wind.

But what happens we come to the situations where strength is meaningless?  Where willpower won’t cut it.  Where we are helpless to do anything to affect the outcome.  In those helpless places, in every place, grace is still what sustains us. Sometimes we face a challenge in life that causes us to say, “This will take a miracle.”  Jesus responds, “Yes.  Yes, it will.  You’re going to need me like never before.  And I am here for you even in this.”

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).  God’s power is most fully on display when there is nothing of us getting in the way, when it is obvious that the outcome is something only God could do.  Something we can’t take credit for.  Something that comes because of sustaining grace.