One of my favorite verses is Zephaniah 3:17. “The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” [NIV]
I often need that reminder that despite what I can see and hear with my natural eyes, my Loving God is beside me, taking great care of me, delighting in me, and singing His wondrous love over me.
The LORD your God is with [you and me] ….
The LORD (Yahweh / Jehovah, the eternal, self-existent One)
your God (Elohim, the very great Supreme God)
is with you (qereb, in the midst, at the center)
Jesus (Immanuel / God with us) confirmed that promise. He said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” [Matt 28:20 NIV]
Before our God says anything else, He reminds us that He is with us. In our midst. At the very center. We can go nowhere, high or low, east or west, north or south, where He is not with us. And He is with us not just in the broad “God is everywhere” sense, but with us in a personal “He knows my name and deepest thoughts” sense.
In our greatest triumphs and lowest failures, He is with us. In our joys and in our fears, He is with us. Whether we are surrounded by others or dwell alone, He is with us. There is nothing we can do to change that. Nothing we can do to make God abandon us. He is with us. Whether we sense His presence or not, He is still with us.
Father, your loving personal care takes my breath away. “What did I ever do to deserve loving You?” Enable me to walk worthy of Your love. Amen.
