THE LORD IS NEAR THE BROKENHEARTED
“The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all” (Psa 34:18-19).
We enjoy December as a wonderful time of gift-giving, family and appreciation for all our blessings from God. Yet, not everyone is so fortunate.
I talked to someone this past Monday who was collecting toys for disadvantaged kids at Christmas. He said “Toys for Tots” in Huntsville, Alabama last year had 3,000 requests for toys but this year they had 10,000! Due to financial problems, one survey found that 40% of people said they would forego gift-giving this year. Also, this is a time when widows and widowers are lonely because the holiday season poignantly reminds them that their loved one is missing from their life.
God is Near!
So, whatever our challenges are, we need to remember that God is bigger than any problem we may have, and even bigger than all the problems together we may have. This is where I can learn that God has the power, if I have the faith in Him (Eph 3:20-21). If we are in Christ, God is just a prayer away (Gal 3:26-27, 4:6; Heb 4:16). God is closer to us than our own thoughts. The Lord did not promise to exempt us from trials but to go with us through them.
Jesus said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God” (Lk 18:27). Do you have “impossible” problems? The apostle John reminds us: “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world–our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 Jn 5:4-5). Faith in the Lord is the victory! We show this faith in God, not by mere lip-service of pious songs, but in lovingly following His will everyday of our lives (1 Jn 5:3).
Nothing – no financial disaster, no personal tragedy, no relational challenge – can defeat us if we are on God’s winning side of faith. He has promised to be near us and help us.
If you are not near to God, who moved?
W. Frank Walton