Never Alone

It seems like when life gets too tough to handle, even when you don't tell your friends and family, they just seem to know somehow.  They gather around you, let you spend the night at their houses, offer to come over at random hours of the night and talk, bring you food, watch your kids for you, send you thoughtful texts and pray for you.

They just seem to be there right when you need them at exactly the right time.  And, you realize that you are not alone.  In fact, you never were.

But, the devil?  He sure wants you to believe that you are in this life alone.

That your battles are so bad that you can't talk to anyone about them.

He wants to make SURE that you feel as isolated as possible, that you have messed up so bad that nothing can ever be right again.  That no one could possibly love you if they knew what a flawed person you are, etc, etc, etc...

But, it simply isn't true.  None of it is.

Romans 8:37-39 tells us that "we are more than conquerors through him who loved us" and that  "neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

God always loves us.  Even when we mess up.  The devil CANNOT on his own separate us from God's love!  He can, however, deceive us into to feeling isolated, alone, "too flawed" and trick us into turning our backs on God.  But, God is always right there for us and, in fact, goes AFTER us like in the parable of the lost sheep: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home," Luke 15:4-6.  That just means so much to me to know that he is willing to carry us back like that, to know that we can't sneak out unmissed and unwanted. 
 
And, then when you see God's people passing along that great love to each other it's one of the biggest weapons to combat the devil's lies.  

So tonight I am just very thankful for my friends and family who remind me daily of God's love through their love and kindness toward my kids and I.  And, for God who watches out for us and provides what we need at exactly the right time. 
 
And, I'm thankful to know that I am never alone.