Always means…..Always
I heard a story recently of a couple that grew up just a few streets apart from each other, but didn’t meet until after high school. Once they started dating and talking about life, and family, and where they grew up, they pieced it together and wondered how in the world they had never met before. They had even shared friends and knew various people in each other’s family. It’s like each of them was right there, nearby, waiting for the other, though they didn’t know it.
In John 5:17, Jesus says, “My Father is always working, and so am I” (NLT). Ian Hamilton says about this verse that ‘always’ means… “Always! Not occasionally. Not much of the time. But all of the time… and [since] He is always at work, how can we ever be daunted and discouraged? It is true that our God’s working is not always, or even often, obvious… Nonetheless, He is always at work, fulfilling His sure, sovereign, blessed purposes.” This reminds me of the phrase we sing, “Even when I don’t feel it He’s working.”
Sunday we began the service by calling out challenges we face throughout the week and then calling out Jesus’ name, declaring His name and His power over the struggle. I don’t know about you, but many times I let a struggle or sin linger and fester longer than I should and give it more room than it should have in my life. But spiritual warfare is not complex. All you have to do is stop and call out the name of Jesus. He is there, always nearby, just waiting for us to cry out for him. He’s always working even when we are not aware of how close His presence is.This week I’d encourage you to begin each morning by confessing sin and calling upon Jesus’ name to drive out any sin. Pray that He would give you the attentiveness of mind to continue to call upon Him all throughout the day instead of allowing sin to linger. As we do this more and more, our church will grow strong into oaks of righteousness in the South End of Louisville!
Photo by James Kovin on Unsplash